Ara Waterlily: The Journey to Become King
by pikaace
Summary: Alt. Universe: Ryan is a normal kid with normal troubles in a normal life. That is, until he finds himself caught in the Great Mamodo Battle alongside Ara Waterlily, a Mamodo. Together they must face challenges and enemies and team up with new friends along the way to help Ara become the new King.
1. Characters and Author's note

**Character Bios**

**Name:** Ara Waterlily

**Age:** 14

**Species:** Mamodo

**Hair color/style:** Pure blond with bangs and just touches her shoulders in length

**Book color:** Sky blue

**Eye color:** Blue

**Partner:** Ryan

**Personality:** Having been a loner in the Mamodo world, Ara didn't have many friends to speak of. Though she is mature, she sees the human world through the eyes of a child, resulting in admiration and naivety. However, she is kind and caring beyond belief and will always stick up for anyone she considers a friend. Even if she sees a smidgeon of good in someone, whether it's a complete stranger or an enemy, Ara will reach out with a gesture of friendship and open arms. The one thing she cares for more than anything is her partner Ryan. She would gladly put her life on the line if it meant protecting him. Her goal is to win the Mamodo battle and become Queen so she can bring peace to the Mamodo world.

**Name:** Ryan Reynolds

**Age:** 15

**Species:** Human

**Hair color/style:** Medium brown, straight, and wavy with bangs that just touch his eyes

**Eye color:** Dark brown

**Role:** Book owner and sophomore high school student

**Partner:** Ara

**Personality:** Quiet and studious, Ryan is an average high school student. He was never very talkative ever since he moved from his old home in New York to Maryland and left his friends behind. His social skills have depleted dramatically since then and became very grumpy and hot-headed most of the day. But despite his now-horrible attitude, he is kind and very brave deep down in his heart. He wants nothing more than to help Ara become the new ruler of the Mamodo world so she can help stop the fights going on. He does whatever he can to help and support Ara in battle, whether it's throwing rocks at the enemy or even protecting Ara from a devastating blow. No matter how tough the battle becomes, Ryan knows he can trust Ara to pull through whatever it takes.

**AN:**

**Hey! Pikaace here! Just a little heads up on my new Zatch Bell fan fic! Ever since I watched the series, I created my own Mamodo and partner for this. This is like an alternate dimension to Zatch and Kiyo's world so they won't be appearing. I don't plan to use any charaters from the series unless I decided to make their universes cross or something. I haven't copied any spells, I made up my own. Anyway, this fan fic is going to be about Ara's journey to becoming the King in this universe while Zatch will become the King in his universe. Just PM me if you're confused by all this. Enjoy the new story!**


	2. The Meeting of Partners

Chapter 1

It was just another normal day for Ryan at school. He pushed his wavy brown hair away from his eyes as he stared into space while his teacher went on and on about the battles of World War II; just another rotten day for a sophomore student.

He was fifteen years old and hated school almost as much as anyone else, maybe more, only he was pretty smart. He wasn't very popular because he was pretty short compared most of the other boys in school. Not to mention his social skills needed serious work. Result: not many friends.

Ryan continued to stare out the window of the classroom until the bell finally rang for the school day to end. He slowly packed his stuff and walked out of the building with his head down. The sky was dark grey and looking pretty dangerous. It almost reminded him of his home back in New York City. He had moved to Maryland just a few months ago, leaving his school and his friends.

When his dad left them, his mother had to find a new job that would provide enough to support them, which resulted in moving from the big city, to the suburbs. Sure, he wrote his friends and chatted with them on the Internet all the time, but it just wasn't the same. He heard a low rumble of thunder before the sky opened up.

"Great," he muttered and cursed silently in annoyance as he pulled up his hood.

Rain was last thing he needed; he was already having a bad day. By the time a got home, the rain had easily soaked through his hooded sweatshirt. As he took off his drenched sneakers, he noticed that there was another pair of shoes by the door. They were white with bright blue shoelaces and soles. He took off his wet socks and threw them into the hamper that was by the stairs. His house was fairly small with only two floors. The laundry was done in the garage where his mom's car was parked, along with a washer and a dryer. There was a small hallway that led to the kitchen that was lit a single bulb. He walked down the hallway and into the kitchen to find his mom putting the finishing touches on dinner.

His mom turned to him and smiled, "Hey, you're just in time to eat." She said cheerfully; but Ryan could easily tell that she was exhausted from work.

His mom worked all day from six in the morning to six at night as a secretary at an insurance office. Since Ryan had to walk about an hour to get to school and vice versa, he was usually the first one home. Today, however, he had decided to stay after school in the library to study for an upcoming quiz since he had nothing better to do.

His mom put the food on the table as Ryan sat down and walked to the entrance of the living room which was connected to the kitchen.

"Come on in, it's time to eat." She called gently into the room.

So there _was_ someone else here after all. He looked up as a girl about a year younger than him and about the same height as him entered the kitchen. She had bright blonde hair and deep blue eyes that looked somewhat shy and scared. She wore cyan blue yoga pants and a hooded sweatshirt of the same color that accented her eyes and hair quite dramatically. Under her arm was a sky blue book.

She silently sat down across the table from Ryan and tried not to make eye contact.

"This is my son, who I was telling you about, this is Ryan," Mom said, gesturing to Ryan.

Ryan found this almost as awkward as the girl. He looked at her and gave her a nod and a small smile.

"And Ryan, this is Ara Waterlily. She doesn't have a place to stay so she'll be staying with us for a while." Mom said.

Ara returned the small head gesture and smile to Ryan as Mom began to serve dinner. Everyone ate in silence; it seemed to last an eternity to Ryan. Ara ate all her dinner quickly but politely. It was like she hadn't had anything to eat in forever.

After she finished, she finally spoke up, "Is it alright if I go to bed now? I'm pretty tired from my trip."

Mom nodded, "Of course; the spare room is up the stairs and to the left."

When Ara left the room, Ryan faced his mom. "Why is she here again?" he asked when he was certain Ara was out of earshot.

"She has no place to stay. She says she doesn't know where or who her parents are and won't tell me anything else,"

She took a deep breath and looked at the blue book Ara had left on the table, "I let her stay here because I thought you could figure out where she's from. You saw how she carries that book around; it must have the answers to who she is. I want you to read it and find out." She explained.

Ryan made a face as if to say, 'Are you serious?'

"Isn't that like invading her personal space?" he asked.

In truth, he didn't want any part of this. He had his own problems to deal with, why should he handle hers too?

"She said we could look at it if we really wanted to. I've already looked and I don't understand what that book is. I'm hoping that you can figure it out." Mom said.

Ryan let out a huge sigh before picking up the book, "Fine," he huffed and walked upstairs to his room, dragging his backpack behind him.

His room was fairly normal size, with a desk, a hardwood floor, a bed and two windows; a big one next to his desk, and a small one over the head of his bed. He closed the door, threw the book on his bed, and sat down at his desk. The rain was still coming down hard, and thunder rumbled loudly. Ryan put his head in his hands and sighed; this had been an even worst day than he thought.

If he was back in New York, he would be hanging out with his friends and having the time of his life. He clenched his fists; it was his dad's fault that they had to move. All he remembered was seeing his dad storm out of their apartment just as he was coming home from school. That was the last he ever heard of him. Ryan felt the anger and hate boil even more in his veins. He swore, if he ever found him, he would make him pay for leaving them. He could count on it.

A gentle blue glow came from behind him. He turned around, and to his horror, the glowing was coming from Ara's book. Without thinking, he got up and slowly walked toward his bed. He hesitated before picking up the book, for fear that it might explode or something, and slowly opened it.

The pages were full of strange symbols.

"What kind of language is this? I can't read a word of it." He said to himself.

He noticed that the first two lines of one page were glowing in a darker shade of blue. Ryan let out a gasp; he could read every word as if it were plain English! He pointed to the blue words, but didn't notice that Ara had entered his room, her eyes wide with fear and shock.

Before she could stop him, Ryan began to read,

"_The first spell,_" he read.

Ara stepped towards him and reached out to him, "No! Wait!" she cried, but it was too late,

"_Aris._" Ryan finished.

There was a blast and a shower of water and glass as he watched a blast of water came from behind him and shot out the overhead window. He cringed and slowly turned to face Ara. Her eyes were blank and glowing bright blue, her mouth was unhinged like a snake as excess water dripped out. A split second later, her eyes and mouth returned to normal.

The two teens stared at each other, their faces a mixture of amazement and fear. Ryan dropped Ara's book, his hands shaking. Did she just shoot water out of her mouth? How was that possible?

Ara looked at her book that was lying open on the ground, and back up at Ryan. This boy, of all people, was her partner for the Great Battle? How could they be if they hadn't even talked to each other?

Ryan was the first to find his voice, "What…are you?" he asked slowly.

Ara looked at her feet, as if she would find the answer there, "I'm…," she paused and pondered what to say. It wouldn't hurt to tell him now; I mean, he already saw her abilities and now that he can read the book there was no turning back from the Battle that lay ahead of them.

Ara picked up her book and sat down on Ryan's bed. She patted the place next to her,

"I think you should sit down before I tell you."

Ryan hesitated and slowly sat down next to her.

Ara took a deep breath and said softly,

"I'm what you would call…..a Mamodo."


	3. Why Become King?

Chapter 2

Ryan stared at her in disbelief.

"I come from a different world, along with 99 other Mamodo children like me. We all have special powers that we use in battle." Ara explained.

"Battle?" Ryan asked.

"You see, every 1000 years, 100 Mamodo children are chosen to come here so we can choose a new King for our world. We each have our own Spell Book and form a partnership with the human who can read our book,"Ara held up her own book,

"With these books, we have to battle other Mamodo until one or the other Spell Book is burned….." Ara trailed off.

"What happens if your book is burned?" Ryan asked.

Ara hesitated before answering,

"Then…..that Mamodo loses the fight….and returns to the Mamodo World…for good," She said slowly,

"And the one Mamodo who lasts the whole battle without losing their book…is the new Mamodo King." She finished, looking down at her book and stroking its cover.

Ryan took this time to ponder what she had just told him. It couldn't be true could it? The fact that children from another world that were here to fight each other just to choose a new king was just ridiculous, right? But, it would explain what happened when he read her book. The blast of water coming from behind him and breaking his window; who knew what kind of other powers Ara and these other Mamodo children could have.

But even if this _was_ real or not, these fights sounded dangerous and he already had enough problems as it is. But a twisted feeling inside told him that he really didn't have a choice,

"What if you don't want to fight?" he asked.

He asked not only for himself, but for Ara too. From the way she explained the battle to him, she didn't sound too sure about fighting either.

Ara looked up at him, "It's too late now," she said softly.

Ryan's eyes widened as Ara held up her book, "My book has already chosen you to be my human partner. Now that you've read a spell, there's no turning back. While there are Mamodo who _will_ show mercy and try not to fight, there are many who will stop at nothing if it means winning the battle; even betraying their friends and family. They'll keep coming until my book is burned and until the battle is over." Ara explained sadly.

Ryan's heart sank, so much for being normal. Ara stood up and placed her book on Ryan's desk,

"Think about it for a while; I won't bother you about it until you want to talk about it." She said.

Just before she walked out the door, Ryan called out, "Wait,"

Ara paused.

"Do you _want_ to be King?" he asked.

Ara was quiet until she answered without turning,

"Well….yes in a way. But I will refuse to fight anyone who I consider a friend. But…if I were to become King, I would make so there would be no more fighting between friends, and bring all the Mamodo together in peace."

Ara exited the room, leaving Ryan alone. He stared at the book sitting on his desk; he had a lot to think about.

**AN:**

**Hey again! I know this chapter was pretty short, but I needed some time to think about the next chapter. I'll admit, Ara's motivation to be King is almost like Zatch's, but the adventures _will_ be different, trust me.**

** The next chapter is probably going to be Ara and Ryan's first Mamodo battle so I need some inspiration. From this chapter on, I will be accepting OCs. **

**If you have a Mamodo and Partner dreamed up, then leave a review or PM me their names, ages, appearance, personality, and spells. I will give you all full credit for creating them of course!**

**Also, if you have any ideas of what kind of Mamodo they should battle next, or a chapter idea, PLEASE tell me! I have a feeling these next few chapters are going to be a blast! Till then, see ya!**


	4. The First Battle

Chapter 3

The next morning, Ryan dragged himself out of bed and got dressed. He went downstairs to find Mom getting ready to leave and Ara was eating some cereal. He sat down across from Ara as Mom placed a bowl of cereal in front of him. They ate silently and Ara got up and started eating an apple when she finished. Ryan on the other hand walked back up to his room to get his backpack.

While he was getting his stuff, he noticed Ara's book still sitting on his desk. He still didn't exactly believe Ara about the whole battle thing, but he was interested in the strange symbols that were in the book.

He heard the garage open and a car drive out. His mom was off to work. Ryan tucked the book under his arm and walked downstairs.

"Hey Ara!" he called from the doorway.

Ara peeked out from the kitchen.

"Is it okay if I take this to school with me? I want to look into these symbols more." He said, holding up her book.

Ara made a face, "I don't think that's a good idea. There could be other Mamodo out there, and they won't hesitate to attack if they see you alone with the book." She said.

Ryan rolled his eyes, "Relax, I'm pretty sure I would notice if someone was watching me." He said and walked out the door before Ara could say another word.

Ryan kept the book under his arm as he walked to school and looked at whenever he got the chance during classes. He looked through the whole book and the only words he could was where they turned blue. He tried using the computer in the library but couldn't find any language that even _resembled_ the symbols. Before he knew it, the day had already ended. Since it was Friday, Ryan started the long walk home right away instead of staying after.

As he walked through an empty street he looked at the book one more time before placing it in his backpack.

_"Emubao!" _

Ryan was blown forward as a booming sound came from behind him. Ryan got up, picked up his backpack and looked behind him to see a black mark burned into the sidewalk from where he last stood. Two figures than came forward from the smoke.

They were two girls; one looked about Ara's age, had bright red hair that was tied into a long braid, and piercing red eyes that reminded Ryan of Ara's blue eyes. She wore an orange dress and yellow shoes; she closely resembled a flame.

The girl next to her looked like she was 19 or 20, had long black hair, and wore a blue tank top, jeans and black and white sneakers. Bu that wasn't what Ryan really noticed. In the black haired girl's hands was a scarlet book that looked just like Ara's and it was glowing with a warm orange glow.

The girl holding the book smirked,

"Nice shot Rufina," she said.

The red haired girl smiled evilly,

"Don't compliment me yet; let's take care of this guy and his book first Nina." She said and held up her hand with her palm facing Ryan.

The girl called Nina smiled as the book began to glow more intently.

_"Emubao!"_She yelled.

The other girl, Rufina, smiled as her palm lit up. A split second later an explosion of flames erupted in front of Ryan as if a plane had just dropped a bomb on the sidewalk. Ryan flew back and slammed onto the concrete ground. He could feel bruises forming on his arms and legs and a large scratch on his cheek. The raw skin stung from his touch as he struggled to get up.

'No! Ara was right!' he thought as he mentally kicked himself for not listening.

Ara had warned him not to bring the book and now he was going to get blown up by another Mamodo, or worse.

_"Emubau!" _Nina yelled and another explosion came from behind him, so closely he almost feel the flames licking his back.

He flew forwards again, and fell on his face as he slid across the sidewalk. He tasted blood on his lip and felt a little dizzy since his forehead had just smacked the ground. His backpack lay in front of him, with Ara's book peaking out of it. Ryan reached and grabbed it,

'They'll just keep coming until the battle is over! And if I let the book get destroyed…Ara's gone for good!' He thought frantically.

He managed to get to his knees, but the enemy had already sighted the book.

"Finish him Nina!" Rufina ordered as she held up both her hands this time.

Ryan turned just in time as Nina yelled,

_"Fleigaru!"_

A concentrated stream of red hot flames shot toward Ryan from the Mamodo's hands. Ryan tried to run, but his body was too shaken from the explosions. He clutched Ara's book to his chest and squeezed his eyes shut as he waited for the flames to consume him and the book. But the flames never came. He looked up to see Ara in front of him with her arms outstretched, taking the full brunt of the flames with her entire body.

"Ara!" he cried in horror.

After what seemed like hours the flames subsided and Ara lowered her arms. Ara quickly turned to Ryan and knelt down,

"You okay?" she asked.

"I should be asking you that!" Ryan answered.

There were burns on the girl's face and the front of her blue hooded sweatshirt was black as coal.

"Don't worry, my body is stronger than yours,"

Ara got up and turned back to Rufina and Nina,

"Mamodo are made to withstand these kind of things."

"Aw, isn't that sweet Rufina? The kids Mamodo showed up to save the day," Nina said.

"Who cares, this will make the fight much more interesting," Rufina sneered as she raised her hands again,

"and once this girl is done I'll be one step closer to being the Mamodo King."

Ara gritted her teeth,

"You haven't changed at all Rufina; you're still as stuck up and arrogant as ever."

Rufina smiled, "Well, well; Ara Waterlily. I thought you looked familiar. I'm surprised to see you still in the battle. But that's about to change really fast!"

Nina's book began to glow again. Ara turned to Ryan,

"I hate to drag you into this, but we have to fight! You won't be safe unless we beat them!" she said.

Ryan frowned and looked at the book. Did he really want to get involved in this? He did kind of owe Ara for saving him from the fire, but something kept tugging at his mind.

"Did…..did you protect me…..just because I have your book?" he asked slowly.

Ara put on a confused face,"What? I couldn't care less about that book!"

Ryan looked up at her in surprise, "But…..I thought you _wanted_ to become King." He said.

"I do, but I don't want you to suffer because of me; I was so worried when you left this morning that I followed you to school so I could keep an eye out for anyone who wanted to hurt you. I _want_ to protect you. Your safety is _much _more important than this stupid fight; because we're friends aren't we?" Ara asked with a small smile.

Ryan's eyes widened; it had been so long since someone considered him a friend. He couldn't help but feel moved by what Ara had said. Rufina on the other hand was getting impatient,

"I've had enough of this mushy talk! Get them Nina!"

_"Fleigaru!" _Nina yelled and the pillar of flames shot toward Ara and Ryan.

Ryan got to his feet and Ara faced the oncoming flames.

"Partners?" Ara asked.

"Partners!" Ryan agreed and opened the book that began to glow bright blue.

"You know what to do!" Ara said.

Ryan nodded, "You bet! _The first spell! Aris!" _he yelled.

Ara's eyes once again became blank and glowed blue. Her mouth unhinged and the blast of ice cold water fired out. They hit the flames and both spells disappeared in an even match. Rufina gritted her teeth and put one hand down,

"Nina!" she yelled.

_"Emubao!"_ Nina yelled.

Ara ran toward Ryan, "What're you-" Ryan stuttered as Ara grabbed him by the waist and jumped a few yards away as the explosion went off near where they were just standing. Ara put him down and faced they faced Nina and Rufina who started towards them.

"I know Rufina's explosion spell can only work within a certain range, so if you stay far enough away she shouldn't be able to hit you." Ara said.

Ryan nodded in understanding then started to think, "We need to get closer; that fire spell is too hot for your water spell to get through from a distance." He said.

"Leave that to me, I'll charge in and you can cast the spell when I get close enough. But make sure I'm facing Rufina because I can't control where to aim the spell." Ara said.

"Okay and I'll try to keep my distance so that explosion spell can't hurt me," Ryan agreed.

Ara nodded and began to run towards Rufina.

_"Fleigaru!"_ Nina yelled.

Rufina shot the streams of fire at Ara who easily dodged every one. Eventually, she was only a few feet away from the red-haired Mamodo.

"Now Ryan!" Ara yelled.

_"ARIS!" _Ryan yelled as loud as he could.

"_Fleigaru!" _Nina yelled at the last minute.

The two spells clashed and stayed suspended between the two Mamodo, both trying to overcome the other. Ryan could feel Ara's power draining as Rufina's fire spell began to overpower Ara's water spell.

'Don't give up Ara!' Ryan thought, 'you've come this far and gave it your all, now I'm going to help you win this battle!'

Ara's book glowed brighter than ever as Ryan felt the power from his heart flow into the pages like a river. As if Ara had heard every word, the water spell grew bigger until it completely overwhelmed the fire spell.

"NO!" Rufina cried as the fire spell disappeared and the water slammed into her and Nina.

Ara's eyes returned to normal as Rufina and Nina lay on the ground. Rufina's scarlet book lay on the ground, ablaze in yellow flames. They watched as Rufina's body became transparent and slowly dissolved away. Rufina gave Ara one last look before her book completely burned away, taking her with it. Nina looked at Ara in fear before running away as fast as she could.

Ryan grinned as the book stopped glowing, "We…did it," he said slowly.

"Ryan!" Ara cried in alarm as he fell to his knees.

Ara caught him just in time before he could hit the ground. "Are you alright?" she asked.

Ryan nodded, "Yeah, just a little winded,"

he looked at all the damage Rufina's fire spells had done. Parts of the sidewalk were burnt black and small flames burned on small patches of grass.

"So….this is the Great Battle huh?" he asked.

Ara nodded, "Yep, and this just the beginning; there are lots more Mamodo out there who are even stronger than Rufina."

Ryan had a feeling she was going to say that. He and Ara were partners now, and they seemed to have a stronger connection than any other Mamodo. He had to admit, he thought that all Mamodo were the same; but Ara was much different. She just wanted to do the right thing and protect her friends from the battle, not caring if she won or lost. But Ryan could tell, Ara wanted more than anything to be King, but she wasn't willing to sacrifice anything precious to her to make it happen.

"Then we'll have to get even stronger with every battle," he said.

Ara faced him in surprise.

"This battle may be pretty dangerous, but I'm willing to do whatever it takes to help you become King. Your world needs a ruler like you Ara; someone who cares about everyone and does the right thing and won't sacrifice anything,"

Ryan smiled, "You can count on me."

Ara smiled back and nodded, "Thanks Ryan. And I promise, I'll protect you until the battle is over."

Ara stood up and held out her hand, which Ryan took. Ryan was still pretty worn out from the battle, so he leaned on Ara as they slowly walked back home.

"What are we going to tell your mom?" Ara asked.

"Just tell her I got into a little fight at school. I don't think she'll be too happy about me joining a war with you." Ryan answered.

They both laughed softly as the sun shone above them. This was just the beginning of their long journey.

A journey to become King.

**AN:**

**Hey, sorry for the long wait! I was hoping to update yesterday, but fanfiction wasn't letting me log on :( I hope you liked their first battle. It was a little easy, but battles get a lot more complicated when the Mamodo are stronger. Remember, I am still collecting OCs so keep that in mind! See ya!**


	5. The Will to Protect: Protesheild

Chapter 4

"Ow! Careful!" Ryan cried.

"Oh for crying out loud, quit whining!" Ara said firmly as she dabbed some antibiotics on the scrape on Ryan's cheek.

Ara was kneeling next to him on the couch in the living room, and attempting to apply some medicine to the scrape Rufina gave him _and_ keep him from squirming.

"But it _stings!" _He protested.

"It's for your own good, you can't fight other Mamodo with me if you don't heal every once in a while." Ara said.

Ryan sighed and slumped onto the sofa so Ara could continue administering the painful medical treatment. He just hoped that she would hurry up and finish so he could give _her_ injuries some medicine. She had some nasty burns from when she shielded him from Rufina's attack. Then, he noticed that all her burns were gone. She looked as if she hadn't taken the attack at all. It had only been a few hours since their battle and Ryan was still sore and aching from those explosions he took.

"Where did all _your _injuries go?" he asked.

Ara smirked, "I guess I forgot to mention that Mamodo heal faster than humans, so we're always ready to fight."

"Well that hardly seems fair," Ryan said frowning.

Ara made a face,

"What's that supposed to mean? How am I supposed to protect you if I can't heal fast enough?"

Ryan crossed his arms and pouted while Ara finally finished applying the medicine and placed a band-aid on the scrape.

"Now, let's deal with that cut on your lip." She said.

Ryan groaned.

That night, Ara lay awake in her bed. She was relieved that Mom had believed the story about a little fight at school so they wouldn't have to tell her about the battle they had. She remembered Rufina, who was so intent on burning her book that she wouldn't hesitate to kill someone to do it. But then again, Rufina always did whatever it took to get what she wanted back in the Mamodo world; bribing others, lying, spreading rumors, and even stealing. No one was really friends with her, she really only had followers who did whatever she said for fear of her using her explosion spell on them.

Ara just hoped that there were some Mamodo out there who didn't want to win just to be King, but to bring peace to their world; Mamodo who would become friends and allies. Ara was a loner in the Mamodo world and didn't have many friends. The Mamodo who she knew were mostly just acquaintances or school mates.

Ara finally went to sleep, hoping she would have enough power to win this battle and protect Ryan.

The next day, Ryan made sure to keep the book hidden in his backpack until he got to school. Ara had decided to walk with him to school every day in case any Mamodo came. Ryan didn't mind Ara's company; he was glad to have someone to talk to. When Ryan got to school safely, Ara hung around outside the school building or explored. This went on for about three days and no other Mamodo had come.

One day, while Ara was waiting around for Ryan, she noticed a boy leaning against the wall. He looked about her age, had green eyes, and black spiky hair with white on the tips. He wore a black t-shirt and black jeans. He looked somewhat familiar; Ara knew she had seen him before. She continued to look from a distance to try to remember; all she could remember was that she had seen him in the Mamodo world. Was he an enemy or a friend?

The boy then noticed her staring and turned to her. Ara quickly looked away. The boy recognized her as well; he remembered seeing her alone in the forest or near the river in the Mamodo world a had only really talked once or twice; or maybe more. He liked to walk in the forest for some peace and quiet and ran into her sometimes.

He remembered that she told him her name and was pretty friendly towards him when they first met even though he was a stranger to her.

"Hey," he called to her.

Ara looked up quickly.

"Isn't your name Ara Waterlily?" he asked.

Ara nodded; she remembered that she _did _tell him her name when they met. She got up and walked towards him,

"You're that Mamodo who I met in the forest sometimes," she said and then she remembered,

"You're name is Spilo, right?"

The boy nodded,

"So you're in this battle too huh?" Spilo said smiling.

Ara nodded,

"I already found a partner, what about you?" she asked.

"Yeah, I found one, but he's in class right now," Spilo answered.

"Does he go to this school?" Ara asked pointing to the high school. Spilo shook his head,

"No, he goes to a college near here," he answered.

Ara nodded; Spilo was still as kind as she remembered. Back in the Mamodo world when he met her, he would talk to her about all kinds of things. Spells, the battle, and games he liked to play with his friends. During those times Ara had been meaning to ask him something, but never got the chance; so now was the best time.

Ara looked at the ground,

"Spilo, do you plan….on fighting me to become King?" she asked.

Spilo's eyes widened,

"What do you mean? I don't want to fight you!"

Ara looked up at him in surprise.

"I _do _want to become King, but I don't want to fight any of my friends," He said and looked at Ara,

"and that includes you."

Ara smiled; Spilo hadn't changed at all. Just then, the bell rang for school to be over.

"I'd better go and meet my partner," Ara said. Spilo nodded,

"Yeah, I better head back too; but I'll see you here tomorrow?" he asked,

Ara nodded, "Definitely!"

The next day, Ara met with Spilo again and they talked about the battles they had. Ara told him all about Rufina and the battle with her.

"You must have a really strong bond with your partner," Spilo said.

Ara blushed, "I guess so, but he can really be a handful sometimes; have you fought any Mamodo yet?" she asked.

"We've fought a few, about two or three; they were pretty strong. Also I've learned up to three spells now."

Ara nodded, "Cool! I still have one spell since we've only fought one battle, but I'm sure the second spell will come soon; and Spilo?"

"Yeah?"

'What will you do if you become King?" Ara asked.

Spilo smiled, "I would make it so all the Mamodo would be friends. There would be no enemies anymore who bring harm to innocent Mamodo."

Ara nodded, "That's what I hope to do if I become King; I would bring peace and stop everyone from fighting, maybe even find a new way to decide the King of our world."

Spilo started to say something else, but the bell rang for the end of the day. They got up,

"Well, I'll see you around," Ara said.

"Yeah, see ya!" Spilo said as Ara ran toward the doors of the school to find Ryan.

As Ara and Ryan walked home, Ara was telling him about Splio.

"Are you sure we can trust him, when he wants to be King too?" Ryan asked when Ara had finished.

"I know we can trust him; he told me himself that he doesn't want to fight his friends." Ara said smiling.

Before Ryan could say anything else, an explosion rang out nearby. A pillar of smoke could be seen a few miles away. Ara and Ryan ran towards the smoke until they came to a small jewelry store. The smoke was pouring out the window. Two boys jumped out the window, one carrying a large sack. It didn't take a genius to figure out it was a robbery. But something caught Ryan's eye; one of the boys was holding a silver spell book!

"Ara! I think that boy's a Mamodo!" Ryan said pointing to the boy that was holding the sack who looked a few years older than Ara.

The boy had brown eyes and silver hair. He wore jeans and a white t-shirt. The boy holding his book looked a few years older than him, had dark brown hair that was curly and wore dark blue jeans and a dark red shirt with a brown jacket. The silver haired boy looked at Ara,

"Aren't you the kid who was always hanging around the forest?" he asked her.

Ara's eyes widened as she remembered; she sometimes saw him running around with some other boys in a field just outside the forest she played in. The boy turned to the boy holding his book,

"Ricky, the girl's a Mamodo," he said.

Ricky nodded and opened the book as it began to glow silver.

_"Bearu!" _he yelled.

The boy held up his hand and a silver beam shot from it. Ara and Ryan jumped out of the way just in time, but the attack caused a huge explosion on the street.

"Ben, should aim for the girl or the boy?" Ricky asked.

Ben smiled, "I say we make them _both_ suffer!"

Ryan quickly got up and pulled out Ara's spell book.

_"Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled.

"Ara, aim at the beam!" Ryan yelled as the book began to glow blue.

Ara got up and faced the oncoming attack,

_"Aris!"_Ryan yelled.

Ara's eyes went blank and the water blast rocketed out of her mouth. The water collided with the beam and both spells disappeared.

"Ara, try to run towards them. I'll cast _Aris _when you get close enough." Ryan said.

"Like with Rufina?" Ara asked.

"Yeah, now go!" Ryan said.

Ara ran towards Ben and Ricky, but Ben just smiled and held up his hand again,

_"Oru Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled.

The silver beam shot towards Ara, who easily dodged it.

"I don't think so," Ben said.

He swung his arm to the left and the beam whirled around and hit Ara in the back. Ara cried out in pain and fell to her knees.

"Ara!" Ryan cried.

Ara slowly got up as Ryan saw that the beam had managed to penetrate a small hole in her clothes revealing her burnt skin. Ryan gritted his teeth, so this guy could control his attacks to hit their target.

"Be careful Ara, he can control where the beam spell so keep an eye out!" Ryan called.

"Right!" Ara said nodding and ran towards Ben again.

_"Oru Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled again.

Ben shot the beam and controlled it so it went around Ara for another backward strike, but Ara was ready this time and did a small back flip over the beam. Ben seemed somewhat surprised by this, but he made the beam turn around again just as Ara was landing. Ara barely dodged it as she tried to run towards Ben again, but Ben just kept controlling the beam to block her path. Even though Ara was able to dodge the full blow, she was grazed several times by the close calls and the beam was way too fast for Ryan to cast _Aris_ because if she missed, she wouldn't recover in time to dodge.

Eventually, Ara was beginning to tire from all the running, which gave Ben the opening he needed. He made the beam come in front of Ara and it hit her squarely in the chest.

"That's better," Ben said as Ara fell to the ground at Ryan's feet. Ryan knelt down to her,

"Ara, are you alright?" he asked frantically.

Ara slowly got up into a kneeling position, panting heavily.

"I'll be fine," she answered.

Ryan bit his lip, this was really bad; if they didn't think of a way to beat Ben and his beams they were finished.

"I'm bored, let's end this fight." Ben said as he held up both hands,

_"Ganzu Bearu!" _Ricky yelled.

A white orb appeared between Ben's hands and multiple beams shot towards Ara and Ryan. Ara jumped to her feet and stretched her arms in front of Ryan.

"ARA, NO!" Ryan yelled as all the beams hit Ara's body, burning her sweatshirt and scorching the skin underneath.

As the pain racked her body, Ara stood her ground; she wasn't going to let Ryan get hurt, even if it cost her her chance to become King. After what seemed like an eternity the beams ceased. Ryan stared at Ara in horror as she shook from the pain,

"Ara…" he said softly.

Ben just smirked, one more hit and she was done.

_"Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled.

The silver beam flew towards Ara, who still stood with her arms outstretched and fire in her eyes.

"Ara!" Ryan cried.

_"Luxria!" _a voice yelled.

A figure ran in front of Ara and held up his hand. A blast of white energy erupted from his palm and stopped the beam. A warm golden glow came from behind Ryan and Ara looked up at the familiar figure,

"Spilo!" Ara exclaimed.

Spilo turned to her, "You okay? When I saw you take that beam rapid fire, I thought I was too late." He said.

Ara smiled and nodded, "Yeah, thanks for the save."

Ryan looked behind him and saw that the glow was coming from a golden spell book. The one holding looked about 19 years old and had long blond hair that reached just past his shoulders. He walked past Ryan and next to Spilo,

"Just leave this battle to me!" Spilo said.

Ben gritted his teeth and held up his hand.

_"Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled.

Spilo held up his hand, "Let's get him Leon!"

Leon nodded,

_"Luxria!"_ he yelled.

The white blast of energy flew from his hand and collided with the beam again. Ben nodded to Ricky and held up both his hands.

_"Ganzu Bearu!" _Ricky yelled.

The multiple beams shot towards Spilo and Leon.

_"Luxshield!"_ Leon yelled.

Splio held up both his hands and a large white circular shield appeared above them. All the beams struck the shield and the shield disappeared.

"Ben, these guys are too strong, maybe we should retreat," Ricky said.

"No way, we still have our strongest spell, but we need to be fast." Ben said.

Ricky nodded as the book began to glow silver again.

_"Oru Bearu!"_ Ricky yelled.

_"Luxria!" _Leon yelled.

The two attacks flew toward each other, but Ben made his attack fly around at the last minute to hit Spilo in the side. Spilo cried out as he slammed into Leon and they fell to the ground.

"No, Spilo!" Ara cried.

"Now Ricky!" Ben yelled.

_"Dio Bearuga!"_ Ricky yelled as the glowing intensified.

Ben held up both hands and an enormous concentrated bean of silver energy flew towards Spilo and Leon. Spilo struggled to get up as he faced the oncoming attack. It was way too strong to block with _Luxria _or_ Luxsheild_ and the third wouldn't help at all. Ara began to run towards them, but Ryan grabbed arm,

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

"We have to help them, if we don't do something Spilo's going back to the Mamodo world in pieces!" Ara protested.

"No! It's too dangerous!" Ryan said, but Ara broke free and ran towards Spilo and Leon.

She got in front of them and spread her arms, ready to take the full brunt of the attack. She wasn't going to let any of her friends get hurt; not now, not ever.

Ryan clutched the book to his chest and squeezed his eyes shut,

"ARA, DON'T!" he yelled.

The opened his eyes as the spell book began to glow brightly.

"The book…is glowing?" he wondered.

He opened to the first page, causing the glow to become brighter. His eyes widened as the rest of the symbols on the page turned from black to the darker shade of blue that revealed another spell.

"The symbols, I can read them!" he said out loud.

He looked up as the giant beam got closer to Ara, Spilo and Leon. Ryan closed his eyes and put his hand on the new spell,

'Please, let this new spell save both Ara and Spilo!' he thought as the book glowed brighter.

"Here it goes! _The second spell! Proteshield!" _he yelled.

Ara lowered her arms as her eyes became blank and glowed blue. Just as the giant beam was about to hit, Ara thrust her arms into the air and a giant vortex of water appeared in front of the beam.

"A shield?" Ryan wondered as the beam hit the vortex.

The beam went into the vortex as if it were going through a portal and two streams of water came from the back and connected with Ara's arms. The streams in her arms became white with energy as the beam was absorbed into the water until it completely disappeared. The water vortex disappeared and Ara's eyes returned to normal. She looked at her hands as she felt new energy flow through her body as if she had been instantly healed.

"My energy's back!" she exclaimed.

Ryan smiled, "I get it; _Proteshield_ isn't really a shield. It absorbs the attack and transfers it into your body as energy!" he explained.

Ara nodded and turned to Spilo,

"How about we end this battle?" she asked.

Spilo got up and nodded, "Yeah, let's go!" he said.

Leon got up and opened the book which began to glow golden again,

_"Statorowave!" _he yelled.

Spilo held his hands towards the sky as the air began to crackle with electricity. Ben and Ricky looked up in alarm,

"What's that spell?" Ricky asked.

"I don't know." Ben answered.

They watched as the sky continued to show electricity until it disappeared without doing a thing.

"What was the point of-" Ben was cut off as he realized that both Ara and Spilo were standing right in front of him and Ricky.

The electricity was just a distraction so they could get close!

"Leon!" Spilo yelled as he held up his hand.

"Ryan!" Ara yelled as her eyes began to glow blue.

The two boys nodded as the books began to glow more than ever.

_"LUXRIA!" _

_"ARIS!"_

The two attacks hit Ben and Ricky with overwhelming force. They both collapsed to the ground as Ben's silver book went up in lavender flames. Ben quickly disappeared and Ricky sped off down the road, leaving the sack of jewels on the street.

Later that day, as the sun was beginning to set, the two teams said their good-byes.

"Thanks a lot for the help." Ara said.

Spilo shrugged, "Yeah, but you really saved me with that shield of yours."

Ara smiled, "So, I guess I'll see you around the school tomorrow," She said.

"You bet!" Spilo said nodding.

Ryan walked up to Leon and held out his hand,

"By the way, my name's Ryan." Leon smiled and took it,

"Leon Simons," he answered simply.

Ara smiled and held out her hand to Spilo,

"Let's do our best to become the King of the Mamodo world." She said.

Spilo smiled and took her hand and shook, "It's a deal,"

Both teams then traveled home, both feeling reassured that nearby, was an ally and friend who shared the same goal; to bring peace to their home.

**AN:**

**Spilo and Leon belong to silverdragon1928- thank you for your awesome OCs!**

**Oh and just to let you know Spilo's name is pronounced Spy-low**


	6. The Perfect Rival

Chapter 5

"Got any eights?"

"Go fish."

"Got any fives?"

"Go fish."

"Got any twos?"

"Yep."

"Hand 'em over."

Spilo sighed and gave Ara his two cards. Ara added them to her hand and laid out her set of four twos.

"I think you won," Spilo said, looking at all her sets.

Ara put down the cards she was holding and fell onto her back with a loud sigh; Spilo did the same.

"I am so BORED!" Ara exclaimed.

"I know! And it's only ten thirty!" Spilo agreed, checking his watch.

It had been over five days since the battle with Ben and Ricky and no Mamodo had been seen since. The two Mamodo were running out of things to do while their partners were in class, and were dangerously close to dying of intense boredom. Ara and her new friend Spilo were ready to scream to release their frustration, when they heard music playing in the distance. It was joyful and playful and sounded quite nearby.

"What's that?" Ara wondered as she and Spilo sat up.

"Want to go check it out?" he asked.

"Anything to get us to stop playing this fish game or whatever this is." She answered, gesturing to the cards.

They gathered up the cards and ran towards the music. They walked down the street as the music got louder. They eventually came to a large field where they found the music was coming from a large red tent. Other people we're entering it and seemed quite excited. There were small stands around it that were selling food and small toys and people dressed as clowns were handing out balloons to the younger children.

"What is all this?" Ara wondered.

Spilo looked just as confused, he didn't remember anything like this in the Mamodo world; but he _did_ remember Leon telling him about something like this.

"I think it's called a circus," He said slowly, "Leon told me that they come here for a few months each year and they do a lot of fun things in that tent." He explained.

Ara smiled as the music seemed to call her inside. She grabbed Spilo's wrist and pulled him towards the tent,

"Well, I think we can say good-bye to our boredom!"

Spilo nodded, "Let's go!"

The two Mamodo took off running and ran inside the tent. The climbed onto the bleachers and stared down at the enormous ring in the middle off the tent. After everyone got seated, the lights dimmed and a spotlight appeared in the middle. A man wearing a red tail coat and a tall black hat stepped in as the crowd applauded.

"Ladies and gentleman! Children of all ages! Put your hands together for Maryland's world famous circus act!" he yelled and in an instant, tons of performers appeared in the ring.

Ara's eyes widened with excitement as each act was performed. There were clowns who made them laugh, animals that did tricks, and even people on stilts. But the best performance was the final act. A gymnastic course was set up in the middle of the ring complete with trapezes, high bars, and a trampoline. Two men ran out and jumped on the trampoline and flipped onto the high bars, followed shortly by a small girl that looked about Ryan's age. She had bright red hair that just past her ears and flowing bangs that nearly covered her blue eyes. Her cheeks were rosy and healthy and spotted with freckles. The girl jumped on the trampoline and grabbed onto the trapeze bar.

Spilo and Ara watched in amazement as the acrobats flipped this way and that from fifty feet in the air. But the girl seemed to be the most skilled and the most daring. She pulled off dives and flips without any hesitation and her timing was perfect. When the two men landed, the girl jumped off the trapeze and landed perfectly. The crowd roared as they waved to their fans.

"Wow, I never knew humans could be so talented," Spilo said as they clapped.

Ara nodded, when something caught her eye. She looked in the far corner of the ring where a large curtain separated the ring from the backstage area and saw a boy about her age peaking out of it. He was smiling at the girl as if he was proud of her. Ara didn't let it bug her and continued applauding; little did she know that the boy had spotted her as well. He didn't know her, but there was something about her that seemed odd. He shook it off and went backstage as the crowd began to file out of the tent. Ara and Spilo walked back into the bright sunlight.

"Wow, it's already almost two," Spilo said as he checked his watch.

"We better get back to our partners," Ara said. Spilo nodded and they both took off running.

Meanwhile, the boy from backstage was peeking out of the tent at the two teens,

"Partners," he muttered under his breath.

He knew he had to investigate this further. Ara and Spilo parted ways when they got to Ryan's school, but the boy was watching closely from high in a tree. He smiled as he watched Ara talk to Ryan, when he spotted a glimpse of a blue book,

"Well, I didn't think we'd find a Mamodo here, let alone two," he smirked remembering watching Spilo meet Leon outside of college and catching a glimpse of his gold book. The boy continued to look at the girl,

"I guess she'll be first," he said before looking at how high up in the tree he was, "when I figure out how to get down." He added sheepishly.

About an hour later, the boy returned to the circus and slipped inside the tent.

"That you Chase?" A voice called.

The boy turned towards the voice and the red-haired acrobat walked towards him.

"Who else would it be Reira?" Chase asked.

Reira smiled, "What were you doing? Moping that you're still not as flexible as me?" she teased.

Chase crossed his arms and turned away slightly, "Shut up." He muttered.

He sighed and turned back to her, "But that's not the point, today I found a Mamodo for us."

Reira frowned, "Did they threaten you at all?" she asked.

"No, but they were watching the show today," Chase said, "_and _I saw their books and partners so I know their Mamodo."

Reira sighed and pulled out an olive colored spell book, "Just set it up and let's get it over with." She said.

The next day was Saturday, so Ryan got to stay home. Ara was just glad she and Spilo wouldn't be bored again at school. She told Ryan all about the circus act that they saw yesterday, but not about the boy she saw in the tent. One day, while she was walking outside to get the mail, she noticed someone waiting for her. She recognized him as the boy from the circus tent.

He looked like he was 13 or 14, had tan skin, blue eyes and somewhat long and tousled hair that were a few inches from his shoulders. He wore a white headband, a brown short-sleeved tank top, black shoes, blue cargo shorts, and bandages covered his wrists and hands. Ara could tell that he was quite strong for his age from how his shirt slightly accented his muscular arms. But something told Ara that he was like her in many ways.

"You're a Mamodo named Ara, right?" he asked, crossing his arms. (Yes, he had heard her partner say her name)

Ara frowned, "Yes, I guess that means you're one too?" she asked back.

"That's right," the boy answered. "The name's Chase, and I'm looking to fight you." He said pointing at her.

Ara took a step back in surprise; she didn't think that this particular Mamodo would be so eager to fight. This boy, Chase, wasn't a bad Mamodo; Ara saw that when she saw him smiling at that acrobat during the circus act. She certainly didn't want to fight a Mamodo that could be a friend. But she had a feeling that the only way to get that through to him was by fighting, because from the look in his eyes, he wasn't going to listen to reason.

Ara stood tall, "Where will this fight be?" she asked.

"Inside the circus tent in the main ring in two hours; don't be late." Chase answered and walked off.

Ara ran inside and told Ryan about the challenge.

Ryan frowned, "You think he's strong?" he asked.

Ara shook her head, "I don't know, but we seem really alike in some way."

Ara looked at Ryan, "I don't want to fight this boy; I can tell he's a good Mamodo."

"Then why did you accept his challenge?" Ryan asked.

"Because of his eyes; there was fire in them. Fire that wouldn't be doused by just talking; I think if we fight and talk, he could become our friend."Ara explained.

Ryan sighed; there was no stopping Ara from getting a new friend. He knew how she felt; he was alone for a long time, which was why he accepted Ara's friendship so quickly.

"Okay, but if he won't listen to reason and keeps on fighting, I'll destroy his book."

The two hours passed quickly and Ryan and Ara arrived in the tent just in time. They climbed into the empty ring where Chase and his book owner were waiting for them. Ryan looked at the Mamodo boy whom Ara had called Chase. He could see what Ara meant by feeling that they were alike. His eyes were a piercing blue and burning with fighting spirit just like Ara. But something told him that their eyes weren't the only things that were alike.

Meanwhile, Ara recognized the book owner as the red haired acrobat from the circus show.

"You're the acrobat I saw here." she said pointing to her.

She smiled, "I'm flattered that you remember me, but let's get this fight over with," she opened Chase's olive book that began to glow bright green. "My name's Reira; now let's see what you've got!"

Ryan opened Ara's blue book and it began to glow bright blue.

_"Ganzuru!" _Reira yelled.

Chase's hands began to glow as a large gun appeared in his hands. He loaded it and aimed at Ara before pulling the trigger, which released a blue beam of energy.

_"Aris!" _Ryan yelled.

Ara's eyes became empty and glowed blue as she released the water blast from her unhinged mouth. The two attacks collided before exploding and becoming a large pile of smoke. Ara's eyes became normal and looked up to see Chase lunge through the smoke with his fist ready to strike. Ara swiftly moved to the right, just barely dodging the attack. Chase was ready though, and spun around right as he landed. He threw another fist at Ara who caught it in her palm this time. Ara took this opportunity to throw her own free fist, but Chase caught that one in _his _palm.

As the two struggled to overcome each other, Ara knew this was the perfect time to talk to Chase,

"Chase, I don't want to fight you! I can tell you're a good person and so is Reira! We can be friends Chase, and help each other in this battle!" Ara explained.

Chase only growled and kneed Ara in the stomach causing her to collapse to the ground.

"How naïve are you? This is a _war_! We don't come here to make friends; we come here to choose a new king!" Chase said loudly and threw another fist, which Ara caught as she slowly got into a kneeling position; her bangs covering her eyes.

"You're wrong! I _know_ that there are other Mamodo out there who are kind to each other! I know because one of them is my friend and we will always watch each other's backs until this battle is over! But it looks like I'll have to explain this to you the hard way!" Ara said as she got to her feet.

"Shut up!" Chase yelled and he began to throw another punch, but Ara flipped over him just in time.

The two immediately began to go at it in physical combat, throwing punches and kicks so fast that it was almost impossible to see who was winning. Ryan and Reira watched in amazement as their partners jumped all around them, fighting all out.

"They're perfectly balanced in power and speed," Ryan breathed.

"It's almost like their twins." Reira agreed.

"Tell me Ara, how do you know that so-called friend of yours isn't just deceiving you? How do you know he isn't just waiting for the right opportunity to stab you in the back and take the title of King for himself?" Chase asked as the fight continued fiercely.

Ara frowned, "I know because I trust him! He would never betray me because he has a good heart, like you Chase!" she answered.

Chase gritted his teeth as he and Ara brought the fight back to the center of the ring before breaking apart, "I guess I'll just nail the pain into you!" Chase yelled and nodded to Reira.

_"Ganzuron!" _She yelled.

Chase's hands glowed again, but this time two giant missile launchers appeared. Ryan could tell Ara was worn out from the previous fight, so that meant it was time for the _second spell._ Chase fired two giant missiles toward Ara and her book began to glow again,

_"Proteshield!" _Ryan yelled.

Ara's eyes became blue once again as she thrust her hands into the air to create the giant water vortex. The missiles flew right through and the water streams from the vortex connected with Ara's arms and glowed white as the new energy was transferred into her body. Chase's eyes widened with shock as the vortex disappeared and Ara looked as if she hadn't fought at all.

"You know two spells already? How many battles have you fought?" Chase asked frantically.

Ara looked confused, "We've had two fights," she answered simply holding up two fingers.

The ring was silent as the two Mamodo stared at each other. Chase's face turned red with anger before he exploded,

"WHAT? HOW IS THAT POSSIBLE!" he roared.

Ara and Ryan flinched from the sudden outburst.

"It took us so long to get the _second spell_, and you unlocked it just like _that_?" Chase yelled.

"You don't have to yell you know," Ryan said.

Ara nodded, "And what do you care? How long did it take _you _to unlock the _second spell_?" she asked curiously.

Chase froze for a moment before crossing his arms and turning away, "It's none of your business." He muttered.

Reira smiled and stepped forward, "We've had about….5 or 6 fights before we unlocked the second spell." She answered.

Chase glared at her, "Reira!"

Reira shrugged, "Just telling the truth Chase," she said innocently.

Ara and Ryan looked at each other; both looked equally confused at what the big deal was.

"It doesn't matter!" Chase said firmly as he turned back to Ara and Ryan. "I'll still overwhelm you with my power!"

"But Chase, all our spells _and _physical strength are evenly matched. We couldn't beat each other even at full power." Ara said.

Chase blushed because he knew she was right. He growled and stood up, "Fine, we'll let you go for now,"

"Huh?" Ara and Ryan said together.

"But the next time we meet, I'll definitely be stronger than you!" Chase said.

He and Reira turned around and left the ring leaving Ara and Ryan shocked at what had just happened. Ryan closed Ara's book to cease the glowing and walked next to Ara,

"I don't think we've seen the last of them." Ryan said.

Ara smiled, "I have a feeling he's going to be a real handful. But I've gotta say; I think I've found the perfect rival." She said.

**AN:**

**Oh my GOD! I FINALLY got the next chapter up! Damn writers block! Anyway, I hope you liked the new OCs. Ara and Chase are probably going to have some minor clashes like Zatch and Hyde later on, but for now we'll focus on introducing characters.**

**Spilo and Leon belong to silverdragon1928**

**Chase and Reira belong to DeathySophia**

**Thank you for your OCs! :)**


	7. The Pledge of Courage: Arisword

Chapter 6

Ryan sat at his desk in his room as he looked through the blue spell book. He was trying to figure out how the new spells appeared. Since they already had two spells, the whole book could be filled with different water type attacks. If they could somehow unlock all the spells fast enough they could get stronger before all the other Mamodo that were out to get them, they just had to-

"Ryan! Dinner's ready!"

Ryan growled in frustration, "Not now Ara!" he called back and went back to the spell book.

"C'mon Ryan, we're waiting!" Ara called again.

"I said not now!" Ryan called back.

He went back to reading the book when he heard his door open. Ryan slammed his palms on his desk and turned to face the frowning Mamodo,

"Ara, I said I'm-"

he was cut short as Ara grabbed him from under his armpits and lifted him over her shoulder. Ryan struggled and kicked as Ara began to walk out of the room.

"Ara, what the heck are you doing? Put me down!" he yelled.

Ara didn't say anything until they got to the living room. She threw him on the couch. Before Ryan could say anything, Ara jumped on the couch next to him and began to tickle him.

"H-hey! What're you…..stop it!" he sputtered.

Ara smiled evilly, "Your mom told me all about how you're very ticklish," she said and tickled him even more.

"N-no! St-stop it!" he began to laugh harder, "Pl-please! Stop!"

"Make me!" Ara said back and the tickling intensified.

Ryan curled up against the couch to try and defend himself as laughter racked his body. Ara on the other hand was having a blast! Then she thought of another idea. She grabbed his ankles and held them under one arm.

"Wh-what are you doing?" Ryan asked as he began to calm down. His eyes widened in horror and he tried to get away, but Ara kept a firm grip and began to tickle his feet.

"Ahhhhhhh! Noooooooo!" Ryan yelled as his upper body twisted to get away, but there was no getting away from Ara.

Ara finally stopped when Ryan was red in the face and breathing heavily. Mom was standing in the doorway and smiling; it had been so long since she had seen Ryan have so much fun.

"If you two are done fooling around, come and eat some dinner."

The next day, after Ara had accompanied Ryan to school, she decided to take a walk down a nearby neighborhood. Spilo was traveling with Leon to attend to some family matters for a few days so Ara was on her own. She wandered around for most of the day until it was about 2 'o' clock and decided to start heading back, but a little ways down the road she spied a moving van parked in front of a house. Workmen were carrying boxes and furniture inside while two boys stood in the front yard, looking at their new house.

One looked about Ryan's age with brown hair and brown eyes, wearing a yellow t-shirt with a red stripe across it with jeans and white nike sneakers. The other boy looked to be about 7 or 8 with messy black hair and brown eyes with lines coming down from them. He wore a black t-shirt with an orange stripe down the middle and on the tips of his sleeves, blue shorts, and little brown shoes.

"I like this house, what about you?" The older boy asked.

The younger boy shrugged, "I don't know, it seems kind of bland. I _am _happy that the author is finally introducing us, but I don't get why all the reviewers are giving her compliments on her descriptions, after seeing _this._" He said, gesturing at the house.

Just then, the young boy slipped and fell flat on his back**(Heh heh…)**.

He quickly got up and brushed himself off, "That wasn't funny," he muttered.

Ara walked up to the edge of the yard and the younger boy shivered. He whirled around to face her with a shocked look on his face, and the older boy turned around too. Ara looked at the small boy; the small lines coming from his eyes were only shown on most young Mamodo children. Could this boy be a Mamodo too? She didn't recognize him from anywhere, but something told her that the boy already knew she was a Mamodo. Some Mamodo had the ability to sense when other Mamodo were nearby; an ability Ara knew she didn't have.

But the staring contest was getting awkward, so Ara decided to make conversation, "Hello, are you new here?" she asked politely.

The older boy nodded, "Yeah, we just moved here, do you live around here?" he asked.

Ara shook her head, "Not really, but my friend _does_ go to the school near here. By the way, my name's Ara." She answered.

"My name's Josh and this is Jyan." The older boy said gesturing to the younger boy.

Jyan moved towards her slowly, looking at her carefully. "Are you a Mamodo?" he asked plainly as if it was no big deal.

Ara's and Josh's eyes widened.

Ara knelt down to his eye level, "I don't know, are you a Mamodo?" she asked back.

Jyan grinned, "I knew I sensed one living here."

Josh walked over to them and looked down at Ara, "I'm guessing that you don't want to fight us?" he asked.

Ara ruffled Jyan's hair, "Of course not, I don't think I could fight a Mamodo whose younger than me."

Josh smiled and reached into his backpack where he pulled out a dark blue spell book, "That's good, because we aren't big fans of fighting either," he said.

Ara's head jerked up as she heard the dismissal bell ring from the school. She got to her feet, "I better go meet my partner, see you around." She said as she began to jog back towards the school.

"See ya!" Josh said waving.

Jyan's smile slowly turned into a frown as well as Josh's, "Think we can trust her?" Josh asked.

Jyan shrugged, "I don't know, let's just wait and see; she seems really nice." He said simply.

Josh sighed; he sometimes wished he could relax around things like this as easily as Jyan could. But then again, Jyan never took anything seriously, not even around enemies.

"C'mon, let's go inside and explore a bit," Josh said. Jyan nodded and trotted after Josh; little did they know that a pair of shadows watched them carefully from afar, their eyes locked on the dark blue book.

The next day after dinner, Ara took Ryan down to the house to introduce him to her new friends. Ryan had been skeptical at first, but decided to take a leap of faith and trust Ara's judgment. After all, Ara hadn't befriended a bad Mamodo _yet._ The sun was beginning to set and darkness was falling quickly, so they had to hurry. They arrived to find Josh sitting on the porch watching Jyan play with a rubber ball. Jyan gave the ball a hard kick, only to have Ara catch it.

Ara threw the ball back to Jyan, "Hey guys," she said smiling.

Josh got up and walked towards them with Jyan. Josh and Ryan looked at each other as if they were making sure the other wasn't bad news.

"You must be Ara's partner," Josh said.

Ryan nodded and held out his hand, "I'm Ryan Reynolds."

Josh smiled and took it, "I'm Josh Luther." He responded, "And you've already met Jyan." He added looking at the small Mamodo.

Jyan looked up at Ryan, "Something tells me, the author based your character off of someone she _really _likes." He said smugly.

"Huh?" Ryan asked, but Josh brought his fist down hard on Jyan's small head,

"You just _have _to spew rude comments about people don't you?" he asked firmly.

Jyan rubbed his head and looked up with an annoyed look, "I was just pointing out the obvious," he said.

This comment was met with another hard punch on the head, causing Jyan to fall right on his face.

"Would you just shut up?" Josh yelled. Ara giggled, she wondered how these two got along in battles.

Jyan sprang to his feet, his body tense.

"Is something wrong?" Ara asked.

Josh knew that look all too well; there was a Mamodo nearby, and by nearby, he meant _really _close. Jyan's eyes darted around for a few seconds, until they rested on one spot; directly behind Ryan and Ara in a thick grove of trees. His eyes widened as a grassy green glow appeared in the darkness of the evening.

"Look out!" he cried, but it was too late.

_"Amiriga!"_

A large sticky web shot from the trees and wrapped itself around Ryan, binding him from head to toe. Ara cried out in horror and caught him before he fell. Ara felt the net with her hands; it was sticky just like a web.

She knew that web all too well. "Ashur," she whispered.

Back in the Mamodo world, Asher always picked on her when she was younger. Since she was almost always alone, he would shoot her with his webs and leave her there until the spell wore off, which took at least three hours. She knew because she had counted. She had been caught in that webbing more times than she could count; she cringed at the thought of being left out in the open, wrapped in the sticky substance for hours until it finally wore away. Ashur was the reason she began spending more time in the forest, isolating herself from the other Mamodo children.

Ara gently laid Ryan's wrapped up body on the ground while Josh and Jyan jumped in front of them. Their eyes darted around, waiting for the next attack.

"There's no point in hiding Ashur, we know you're there, so come out!" Ara yelled.

Everyone's eyes widened; Ara knew this Mamodo? After a moment of silence the grass green glow appeared, accompanied by two figures. One was a boy with long raven hair and black eyes who looked about eighteen or older. He wore tall black boots, long pants, and a tunic that were all black. Only his pale skin could be seen clearly in the now rising moonlight. The one holding the book was a grown man wearing a business suit, who had dark brown hair and eyes. Without a word the raven-haired boy held up his hands with his palms facing Josh and Jyan.

_"Amirisen!" _the man yelled.

A glob of webbing shot from the boy's palms that was about the size of a soccer ball and flew towards them. Quick as a flash, Josh pulled out Jyan's dark blue spell book that began to glow when he opened it,

_"Chikeru!" _he yelled.

Jyan's eyes rolled back into his head and his mouth unhinged like Ara's to release a blast of blue energy. The blast burned the webbing glob to a crisp and the excess energy flew towards the enemy. The boy and the man simply jumped to the side and dodged the blast.

Ara looked at the boy, who gave her a smug grin. Fear filled Ara's eyes as she remembered the past. That same grin, the webbing, the insults, it was all coming back to her at the same time. The images flashed through her mind over and over again; she whimpered and crouched on the ground, cowering from the memories. Ryan had never seen Ara so scared before, and he could tell that something about this boy had triggered something of Ara's past.

Jyan's eyes returned to normal and he took a step towards the boy. "Who are you?" he demanded.

The boy smirked, "Like she said, the name's Ashur, long time no see Lilypad." He said turning to Ara.

Ara frowned, "I told you, it's Waterlily!" she said shakily.

Ashur shrugged, "Waterlily, Lilypad, same thing,"

"You know Ara?" Ryan asked (who was still wrapped up in the net on the ground).

Ashur nodded, "Let's just say, we used to have _quite _a bit of fun together." He said evilly.

Ara's eyes widened as she remembered one day in the Mamodo world when she was about 10 years old.

**She was playing in a field near her house with her favorite stuffed doll, when a shadow loomed over her. She looked up to see Ashur who was about 12 at the time, wearing blue jeans and a black t-shirt. **

**Ara looked at the ground, "Hi Ashur," she said without looking up. **

**Ashur responded by reaching down and picking up her doll by its arm, holding with his thumb and index finger it as if it were a bizarre specimen. The doll wore a red dress and had black hair and its face was sewn on as a happy expression. **

**"_This_ is how you have fun? By playing with rag dolls?" he asked, making a face at the doll. **

**Ara stood up and reached for her doll, "Give Eliza back!" she said, but Ashur, who was much taller than her, simply held it up out of her reach. **

**"Eliza? That's her name?" he snorted, "It's an ugly name, just like this doll!"**

** Tears began to form in Ara's eyes, "It is _not, _give her back!" she cried. **

**An evil glint came to Ashur's eyes, "I'll show you what I do with _ugly _and _worthless _toys like this." He said, spitting out each word and waving the doll teasingly above Ara's head. **

**Ara jumped for the doll, but Ashur shoved her to the ground. He held up his hand and muttered **

**_"Amirisen."_ And shot the glob of webbing from his hand. The glob glued Ara to the ground and Ashur turned back to her doll.**

** Ara cried and screamed as Ashur began to slowly rip the limbs off Eliza and pull the soft cotton out of her body. When he was done, he threw the shredded doll to the ground and looked at Ara's tear-stained face. **

**"Remember, tell anyone about this, and I'll make sure you're stuck in webbing forever." He said softly and dangerously.**

** He walked off leaving Ara struggling in the webbing, crying and kicking to get free. When she finally got loose, she picked up what was left of her beloved doll and went home. Of course her parents asked her what happened and managed to fix Eliza for her, but Ara simply said, **

**"I accidently broke her,"**

Ara had regretted not saying anything about what Ashur did ever since that day. But all she ever did was run away from him instead of face him.

"Ara! ARA!" the sound of Ryan's voice brought her back to reality. She shook her head and faced her still tied up partner.

_"Amiriga!" _Ashur's book owner yelled.

Ashur fired the net towards them, but Josh was ready,

_"Rachishiru!" _he yelled.

Jyan's eyes rolled back again and his mouth unhinged. But instead of a blast of energy, and octagon shaped shield appeared. The web hit the shield and bounced back towards Ashur and his partner. In the blink of an eye, Ashur and his partner slipped into the grove of trees.

Jyan ran towards the trees, "C'mon Josh, let's get those jerks!" he yelled.

Josh nodded and turned to Ara and Ryan, "Stay here, we'll take care of them." He said.

Ara nodded and began working Ryan from the net as soon as Josh was out of sight with Jyan. Ara was silent as she slowly worked the sticky web free, until Ryan spoke up.

"Ara, how do you know that Mamodo?" he asked.

Ara frowned as she continued to work on the web. "Ashur was a Mamodo who used to pick on me in the Mamodo world when I was younger. I think he just enjoyed watching me suffer. He would break my toys, stick me in his webs for hours on end, and make fun of everything about me. It finally stopped when I began to hang out alone in the forest, but by then, I had lost a lot of my trust for other Mamodo." She explained.

Ryan couldn't believe this, there were Mamodo who were _that _cruel to others?

"But that wasn't the worst part," Ara went on,

"Every time he hurt me, he threatened to really hurt me if I told anyone about what he did. So every time my parents asked me what happened, I always said it was an accident; that I tripped or fell into a ditch or something. I managed to bottle up all the pain he gave me back then, but I can never forget what he did to me."

"I'm sorry Ara." Ryan said.

Ara finally got the net off of Ryan who took off his backpack, and pulled out Ara's spell book. "How about we help out Josh and Jyan?" he asked.

Ara hesitated before nodding, only she knew what Ashur was capable off. He was smart and tricky like a spider, and he knew how to trap his prey. Ara and Ryan ran through the grove of trees looking for any sign of the battle.

Eventually, they came to a clearing that nearly caused them both to scream. An enormous web hung in front of them, and in the middle was Josh; wrapped in webbing like a cocoon and struggling to get free like a fly in a spider web. Jyan was lying on the ground in front of the web, covered with excess webbing and bruises, and panting heavily.

Ara knelt down to Jyan while Ryan checked on Josh.

"Jyan are you okay? Talk to me!" Ara said, shaking him urgently.

"You okay Josh?" Ryan yelled up to him.

"I'm fine, but you, be careful! This kid is no laughing matter." Josh warned.

Ara gently picked up Jyan and laid him against a tree. "Ara,you're my hero." Jyan said in a girly voice before grinning broadly. Ara laughed, despite the situation. Ryan had just reached out to touch the web, when a voice cried out,

_"Ganzu Amirisen!"_

Hundreds of golf ball sized globs of web flew towards them. One hit Ryan in the stomach, knocking the wind out of him while another glued Ara's wrist to a tree next to Jyan. Ryan lay on the ground panting heavily as Ashur walked out of the shadows towards him. Ryan clutched the book against his chest as he tried to get up, but Ashur was already there.

He kicked Ryan in the chest, knocking him to the ground again. He then knelt down and picked him up by the neck, nearly cutting off his air supply. Ashur lifted Ryan a few feet off the ground, still holding his neck and stuck him on the web. Ryan clawed at Ashur's hand with his free hand, his other hand clutching Ara's book. Ryan was beginning to see spots when Ara yelled,

"Leave him alone!"

Ashur turned towards Ara and smiled. He released Ryan, who began to gasp for air, and walked slowly towards her.

"I've been waiting for this day for a long time, Lilypad," he said evilly. "What I did back home was simply the preliminary round, now I get to watch you and all of your little friends suffer."

Ashur's book glowed again,

_"Ami'rudo!"_ his partner yelled.

Ashur's hand lit up bright green, and a long wooden spear appeared. Ara's bangs hid her eyes as he traced her neck ever so lightly with the tip of his spear,

"First I'm going to hear you scream like you did back in the Mamodo world, and then you'll get to hear your friends scream. One. By. One." He said slowly, pointing at each of her friends. Silence followed for what seemed like hours as Ashur readied his spear.

"I told you…." Ara whispered,

"DON'T CALL ME LILYPAD!" she screamed as she broke her wrist free of the webbing and punched Ashur hard in the stomach.

Ashur stumbled backwards and clutched his stomach. Ryan looked at Ara, her eyes glimmering with courage. Jyan and Josh looked up too, to see the girl radiating with an aura of courage.

"I'm not afraid of you, not anymore! Now I know why you picked on me! It was because you knew our difference in power!" Ara said.

Ashur's eyes widened with fear as Ara slowly walked towards him. How could she have figured it out?

"You knew that you were weaker than me in power, so you wanted to make sure you emotionally scarred before the battle, so I would be too petrified to attack you!" Ara yelled as her book began to glow,

"Well, I'm sick of running from you, and I'm going to shred this web of fear you created for good!"

Ryan knew that glow; he opened Ara's book. His eyes widened as a new spell appeared in dark blue. He looked at Ara who nodded. Ryan poured the last of his energy into the new spell,

"Please, give Ara the power to face her fear," he whispered.

_"The third spell! Arisword!" _he yelled.

To his surprise, Ara's eyes didn't glow blue. Instead, her hand began to glow as a handle made entirely of water appeared in her palm. She grasped the handle and a long, straight blade of ice grew from the end, creating a beautiful sword of water and ice. Ara examined the sword and swung it around with grace. She faced Ashur and held the sword in a fighting stance.

In the blink of an eye, she slashed the web that held Josh and Ryan into tiny pieces, setting them free. She then ran over to Ashur and sliced his spear cleanly in half. Ashur glared at his partner who quickly read another spell,

_"Ganzu Amirisen!" _he yelled.

Ara jumped back as the globs of webbing shot towards her. She ran straight towards Ashur, slicing all the globs as she ran. Ashur's heart filled with fear as she approached him. Why? Why did he have to lose to her? When she reached Ashur, she hit him to the side with the water handle of her sword and ran to his partner.

With her free hand, she knocked the grass green book into the air. She jumped after it and ran it through with the blade, causing it to spontaneously burst into yellow flames. Ashur quickly disappeared and his partner ran off. Ara's sword melted away into nothing and the glow from her book ceased.

She and Jyan helped their partners get out of the grove of trees, and stopped to say good-night and Jyan and Josh's house.

"Thanks for the save you guys," Josh said, who was lying on Jyan's back.

Jyan smiled at Ara, "You know, even thought we didn't do much, I _really _liked this chapter." Ara smiled, she already knew that she had found a great friend and ally in this small boy.

"See you guys tomorrow!" she said.

She supported Ryan on her shoulder all the way home.

Mom heard the door close and went to the living room to greet Ara and Ryan, only to find them sound asleep on the couch. She smiled and turned off the light before going upstairs herself.

She didn't know what kind of things those kids were doing, but it seemed to be helping them get closer. Not just as friends, but as family.

**AN:**

**Ohmigod! This chapter took FOREVER! I know the ending was kind of rushed, but I wanted to focus a little more on Ara's past this chapter and I didn't want to get writer's block again.**

** Poor Ara! I think I made Ashur a little TOO evil. But he's gone now, so who really cares. :)**

**Jyan and Josh belong to thatguy3331**

**I hope to have them fight more later on!**

**(I swear, if Jyan breaks the fourth wall to criticize me again, I'll do more than make him fall on his face! :) )**


	8. A Brother's Wrath Part 1

Chapter 7

"I remember Ashur; he was a jerk to everyone!" Spilo exclaimed.

Ara had just finished telling him about the late night battle with Ashur and how she learned the third spell. They were sitting in the front yard of Ryan's house. Ara and Spilo sat on the grass, while Ryan and Leon sat on the doorstep. Even though Ara and Spilo had pretty much become best friends now, Ryan and Leon were no different. They had a lot in common, like how they had trouble making friends and talking to people. But of course, that all changed when they met their Mamodo.

"So, that battle sounded really intense." Leon said.

Ryan nodded, "I actually thought we wouldn't make, with Ara being petrified and all by that kid. I never knew she had such a rough childhood."

"Yeah, Spilo was the same when we first met. We both had family problems, but we didn't like to talk about it." Leon said.

Before Ryan could ask about it, Spilo spoke again,

"So why did Ashur always pick on you?" he asked.

"It was because of our power difference. Ashur really wanted to be king and thought he was a shoe-in to win, but when he found out about my family history and my powers he wanted to make sure I would lose." Ara answered.

"What do mean?" Spilo asked.

Ara looked up at the sky,

"My family has housed an ancient power for generations. It's been passed down for centuries and used in almost every Mamodo battle. My dad passed that power on to me when I was born. When I got a little older he told me about it, but to careful when I used it because he said it was very dangerous. He said it starts out small, but grows in power with every battle. Eventually, it becomes so powerful that it's very difficult for the Mamodo and partner to control. My dad said he had to use its full power during one battle. It put so much stress on his body that it caused his book to burst into flames and his partner nearly died from using so much energy at once. He never used that power again after that, but he said that one day, a descendant of our family would be able to control that power completely without any consequences. I don't know what this power is or what it does, but I just hope no one gets hurt from me using it." Ara explained.

Spilo nodded in understanding, "That's why Ashur made you so afraid by picking on you; he didn't want you to learn that power during the battle." Ara nodded.

"Well, that was an interesting story," a cold voice said from nowhere.

Everyone's heads snapped up at the voice, and Leon sprang to his feet. He knew that voice all too well. Ara and Ryan looked up and saw what looked like Spilo's evil twin. The boy looked exactly like Spilo, only a little older with spiky red hair with blue tips and evil red eyes that made Ara shudder. He wore blue jeans and a dark red t-shirt. This kid was bad news, Ara could feel it. The boy behind looked a bit older than Leon, wore a white tank top and ripped jeans and had a black buzz cut. His eyes were dark blue, and in his hand he held a black spell book! Ryan's hand slowly went behind him and lay on Ara's book, but Leon already had Spilo's book in hand, ready to fight.

"Roy." Leon spat.

"Makro." Spilo said softly as he and Ara slowly got up.

"You know them?" Ryan asked as he got up hiding the book behind his back.

"All too well." Leon growled.

The human named Roy smirked, "Is that any way to greet your big brother?" he asked.

Ara and Ryan's eyes widened; Leon had a brother?

"Shut up! I stopped being your brother a long time ago!" Leon yelled.

"What's he talking about Spilo?" Ara asked quietly.

"Long story." Spilo answered.

"Well, looks like Spilo's found himself a little friend; that's rare, especially since you're supposed to be enemies." The Mamodo called Makro taunted.

_"Luxria!" _Leon yelled out of nowhere.

Spilo let out a cry of alarm and held up his hand just in time to fire the blast. Makro and Roy jumped out onto the street narrowly dodging the attack.

"Leon, calm down!" Spilo said. He didn't want to risk hurting Ara or Ryan. Leon ran out to the street and Spilo followed.

Roy opened the black spell book, "I wasn't expecting to fight so soon after meeting, but oh well. Let's give a what for Makro!" Roy said.

Makro smiled and held up his hand,

_"Boreria!"_ Roy yelled.

A blast of red light shot from Makro's hand towards Leon and Spilo who avoided it just in time. Ara's eyes widened; even their spells were alike. It was almost like when she and Chase first fought.

_"Luxria!" _Leon yelled.

_"Boreshield!" _Roy yelled.

The white light was blocked by a large round red shield.

_"Boreria!" _Roy yelled.

_"Luxshield!" _Leon yelled.

The white shield appeared and blocked the blast of red light, but Roy smiled.

_"Forimpact!" _he yelled.

A red beam shot out of Makro's hand and hit the _Luxshield_. The shield slowly cracked and broke with a bang, sending Spilo and Leon to the ground.

_"Boreria!" _Roy yelled and the red blast shot towards them.

Ara turned to Ryan who nodded and opened Ara's book. Ara ran up to Leon and Spilo and faced the attack,

_"Aris!" _Ryan yelled.

The blast of red light was swallowed by the water. Spilo smiled at Ara; he could always count on her. Leon on the other hand, wasn't so thrilled.

"What are you doing?" he demanded.

Ryan ran up next to Ara, "C'mon Leon, we can take them down together!" he said.

Ara could tell something was wrong; she had never seen Leon so angry before.

"Let's take them up close; _Arisword!" _Ryan yelled.

The blade of water appeared in Ara's right hand and the blade of ice soon followed.

'So this is the new spell Ara told me about.' Spilo thought as he got to his feet. Ara gripped her sword and ran towards Makro.

"Stay out of this!" Leon said to Ryan loudly, "This is between me and him so just butt out!"

Ryan was a little shocked at Leon's tone of voice. He was just trying to help after all. Ara slashed at Makro who quickly stepped out of the way. Ara tried hitting him with multiple slashes but he dodged every one.

'He's so fast!' Ara thought.

Eventually, Makro managed to find an opening and kicked Ara back. Ara stumbled but managed to hold her ground. Makro nodded to Roy who turned the page of the spell book,

_"Barsmoke!" _he yelled.

"NO!" Leon yelled. Thick black smoke came from both of Makro's hands completely blinding the others. After a few minutes the smoke disappeared, but Roy and Makro were nowhere in sight. Ara's sword melted away as she looked around,

"Where'd they go?" she wondered. Spilo crossed his arms,

"They used that smoke spell as a cover to escape; they must've felt overpowered by the two of us."

Leon's fist clenched and unclenched as he gritted his teeth; if Ara and Ryan had just left the battle to them, they would've pounded those guys into the ground. Ryan sighed and closed Ara's book,

"Something tells me we haven't seen the last of them; but the next they come we'll be ready for them." He said. Ryan turned to Leon and let out a cry of pain as Leon's fist connected with his jaw.

"NO!" Leon yelled as Ryan fell to the ground.

"Ryan!" Ara cried and ran towards her partner. He was knocked out cold. There was a purple mark appearing on his cheek and blood dripped from his mouth.

"What's wrong with you?" Ara demanded, "We just want to-"

"No! Don't help us!" Leon yelled, cutting Ara off, "Just tell him that the next time those two creeps show up don't interfere!"

Spilo stared at his partner in disbelief as he stormed off. Spilo walked over and knelt next to Ara who looked at him with confusion in her eyes.

"Let's get him inside, I can explain there." Spilo said.

Ara nodded and picked up Ryan bridal-style while Spilo picked up the book. They got inside and laid Ryan on the couch. Ara got the first aid kit and started cleaning the blood from his mouth, and Spilo carried in two chairs for them to sit on,

"So who were those two guys anyway?" Ara asked.

"Their names are Roy Simons and Makro; Roy is Leon's brother and is three years older than him. Roy and Leon got along fine when they were kids, but then they started to grow apart. It got worse when they found out that Roy had a different mother and their father had taken him in since his birth mother didn't want him. Roy never trusted his family again after that since everything he knew was now a lie until he finally went to college. He eventually did come back shortly after the battle started, but he had Makro with him." Spilo explained.

Ara nodded; it made sense since the battle had lasted almost half a year now.

"But why does Leon hate Roy so much? I've never seen him so mad before." Ara asked.

Spilo looked at the ground, "The day Roy and Makro came to visit I had just started living with Leon as his partner. Roy realized I was a Mamodo and he started to attack us. We tried to lure them out of the house so no one would get hurt, but it was no use. They kept attacking until we had no choice but to fight back. The fight got worse and worse until our spells collided. The entire house was nearly destroyed and the entire roof collapsed and…" Spilo trailed off and looked away.

"What?" Ara asked.

"Leon's mother was in the house that day. The roof in her room collapsed and completely crushed her." He said quietly.

Ara's eyes grew wide; she knew the Mamodo battle was dangerous, but she hoped that no innocent people were going to be caught in it. She now knew she was wrong.

"That's why Leon is so intent on fighting Roy alone; he wants revenge." Ara said.

Spilo nodded. Ara finished putting a large square of gauze on Ryan's cheek and taping it with medical tape. Ryan eventually began to stir as his cheek stung and he tasted what was left of the blood in his mouth.

"But what about Makro? You're not telling me everything." Ara said.

Spilo went silent and stared at his feet, "He…" he took a deep breath,

"He's my brother." He whispered.

**AN:**

**Le Gasp! Family problems are never good! **

**Yay my first two part chapter! I would like to thank silverdragon1928 for letting me use his two new OCs, Roy and Makro and for giving me the chapter idea! **

**I hope you like fights, because the next chapter is going to be VERY angsty! We even get to see some anger from Spilo!**

**Enjoy!**


	9. A Brother's Wrath Part 2

**OMFG! 7 PAGES IN ONE DAY! My poor keyboard...**

**Aaaaanyway, soooo sorry for the long wait! I've just been having sooo many mind blanks for this fic and my new Hetalia obsession isn't helping at all! But don't worry I don't plan on abandoning it any time soon! Hopefully this will get me back into it so more chappies will come since it's SUMMER! YAYZ!~ **

**Oh and fair warning, this chapter is a tad on the dark side, and no, there are no cookies.**

Chapter 9

_"But what about Makro? You're not telling me everything." Ara said. _

_Spilo went silent and stared at his feet, "He…" he took a deep breath, "He's my brother." He whispered._

Ara's eyes grew wide, "Your brother…" she breathed and Spilo nodded.

Ryan was just beginning to wake up as Spilo stood up, "I better go find Leon; now that Roy and Makro are here it could be dangerous for him to be out alone." He said.

Ara nodded, "Be careful okay?" she asked. Spilo nodded and ran out the door.

Ara turned back to her partner as he began to open his eyes, "Hey, you okay?" Ara said gently.

Ryan looked around for a bit before he realized he was in his house. He felt really light-headed and his mouth felt swollen. "What…happened?" he asked, wincing in pain from opening his mouth.

"Remember that Mamodo we were fighting?" Ara asked.

Ryan nodded and Ara looked at the ground, "Leon punched you really hard; he didn't want us interfering with that battle…Spilo told me everything and it's kinda a long story," she explained.

"Go on." Ryan said nodding.

Ara relayed the whole story to Ryan, who was just as shocked when she was done, "I knew this battle would be dangerous, but never so much that it could kill someone." He said as he looked at the ground.

Ara shook her head, "You can never expect anything with Mamodo battles, not even death." She said.

"What should we do?" Ryan asked.

Ara was silent for a minute, "We have to be careful; it's obvious that Roy and Makro mean business and are bent on destroying Spilo's book," Ryan nodded and slowly sat up.

At that moment, Mom came in; her eyes widened at Ryan's cheek, "Ryan what happened?" she cried and knelt next to him.

Ryan hesitated for a minute, "Leon and I…got into a little fight," he said.

After a quick explanation, the two teens went upstairs to try and forget about the whole situation.

The next day while Ryan was at school, Ara couldn't find Spilo anywhere. She felt a pang of worry; she hoped that Roy and Makro hadn't gotten to them. She looked up and watched grey clouds begin to roll in; a storm was probably coming.

She met Ryan outside at the end of the day when out of nowhere,

_"__Boreria!"_

Ara tackled Ryan to the ground as the blast of red light flew over them. They turned their heads to Roy and Makro, their black book glowing brightly.

Ara and Ryan got to their feet, Ryan ready to take out their spell book, "What do you want?" Ryan said coldly.

"Looking for our little bros; if you're here then they can't be far away," Makro said.

Ara stepped forward, "Well you're wrong, they aren't here," she said frowning.

"Bummer; I was hoping to have a second round," Roy said, closing his eyes and putting one hand in his pocket, "But we could always warm-up," He said opening his eyes and causing the book to glow again, _"Boreria!"_

Ara and Ryan jumped out of the way just in time to avoid the red light. Ryan pulled out the blue spell book and threw his backpack on the ground, _"Aris!" _he yelled.

Makro easily dodged the water blast by side stepping. Ara recovered from the attack just in time to see Makro running towards her.

Ryan acted fast, _"Arisword!" _he yelled.

Ara's icy sword appeared just in time for her to block Makro's oncoming physical attack. The two immediately resorted to physical combat; Ara slashed and jabbed with her sword against Makro's punches and kicks.

Ryan kept a sharp eye on Ara to watch for when the _Arisword _disappeared. He suddenly doubled over as Roy landed a hard punch to his stomach.

Ara turned around in horror as her partner fell to his knees, but she soon realized she had a big mistake, _"Boreria!"_

Makro held his palm right up to her middle as the red light enveloped her while Roy pulled Ryan up and kneed him in the chest. Ara fell to the ground and managed to get to her knees; that attack was much more powerful than usual. Had they been storing up their energy all this time while Makro was fighting her up close?

Ryan managed to pull himself together and opened the book again.

_"Boreria!"_ Roy yelled.

_"Proteshield!" _Ryan yelled.

The giant water vortex appeared in front of Ara, but the red light didn't go inside. Makro had shot the attack in another direction at the last minute; he had shot it directly at Ryan. Ryan cried out in pain as the shield remained up and he fell to the ground.

_"Forimpact!" _Roy yelled and the _Proteshield _was instantly shattered causing Ara to fly backwards. Ara opened her eyes just as Makro placed his foot on her chest, pinning her down while Roy went over to Ryan. Ara instinctively struggled thinking the worst, but Roy did something different.

Instead of grabbing the book out of Ryan's weak hands to burn, he yanked him to his feet by his arm and landed a punch to his already bruised cheek. Ryan felt dazed as he heard Ara's drowned out cries of horror. He staggered backwards before he felt a rough hand grab the front of his shirt and punch his other cheek.

Makro finally held up his hand to Ara, _"Boreria!" _

This time, Ryan heard Ara's scream loud and clear.

Makro removed his foot from the cut and bruised girl and walked over to Ryan who had blood dripping from his mouth as he lay on the ground.

Makro held up his hand again towards Ryan, _"Boreria!" _The spell was cast before he could even brace himself for it.

He opened his eyes a few seconds later to see a patch of blond hair on his chest. The stench of burnt clothes and skin filled the air as his senses came back to him. His eyes widened in horror as he saw a huge hole burned into the back of Ara's blue hooded sweater revealing her bright red skin that was now severely burned; all from the attack meant for him.

Ara slowly got up and faced Makro with her arms outstretched in front of her partner.

Makro smirked, "You're a real fighter, no wonder my bro is friends with you," Ara looked up with a questionable look.

"Haven't you realized it yet?" Makro asked as he punched Ara hard in the stomach.

"Ara!" Ryan cried weakly and tried to get to her only to receive a hard kick in the ribs from Roy.

Ara fell to her knees but was held up by Makro gripping the front of her sweatshirt, "Spilo really cares for you; and I plan to make you his downfall," Makro sneered as he held his palm towards the sky,

_"Boreria!" _The red blast of light fired into the sky.

"It won't be long now." Makro said dangerously. As if his very words had triggered it, rain began to fall.

Spilo sat at the window in Leon's bedroom in silence as his partner read a book on his bed. He wasn't sure what it was about, but it looked boring. Spilo had told Leon that he had explained the back story between him and Roy to Ara.

Leon had begun to feel guilty about lashing out at Ryan; he was just trying to help. He was his friend, how could he let his emotions get the best of him so easily?

Spilo's head snapped up as he saw a blast of red light shoot into the sky from a distance as the rain began to fall. Leon noticed it too and shut his book.

Spilo's heart twisted in fear, "Leon, it's coming from Ryan's school!" he cried.

Leon's eyes grew wide with anger and he grabbed a brown jacket and Spilo's silver book. They ran outside into the pouring rain towards the high school, 'Ara…please be okay….be okay…I'm coming…' Spilo said in his mind over and over as they ran.

Leon on the other hand was trying to control his fear; if Ryan got hurt or worse, then it would be all his fault! He had already injured Ryan and there was no telling how much damage Roy could do to him.

The rain pelted down as they finally arrived at the high school. Their eyes grew big as they took in Roy, Makro and their friends.

Roy had Ryan on his knees and held him by the hair with a switchblade pressed to his throat. A bruised and bloody Ryan weakly clutched the book as he winced in pain and fear from the metal blade nearly cutting his skin.

Makro held an unconscious Ara by her hood, "We've been waiting for you," Roy said with an evil smile.

"What have you done to them?" Leon demanded.

"Patience little bro, we just had some fun while we were waiting for you; we'll let them go on one condition." Roy said.

"We fight now and settle this little family spat," Makro finished.

Spilo and Leon looked at each other and nodded. Makro threw Ara on the muddy ground and Spilo ran up to her. He carefully rolled her over and cradled her in his lap.

Roy put away his switchblade and dragged Ryan forward a bit before shoving him to the ground. Leon knelt next to him and helped him sit up, "Are you alright?" Leon asked frantically.

Ryan nodded and he looked around a bit, "Where's…Ara?" he asked weakly, his eyes half open.

"Spilo's taking care of her…Ryan I'm so sorry," Leon said, clenching his fists.

Ara's blue eyes fluttered open to meet Spilo's green ones, "Spilo?" she whispered, she sported fresh cuts and bruises all over her body and her clothes were torn almost beyond recognition.

Spilo sighed in relief, "Thank goodness, are you alright?" he asked gently.

"I…I think so…" Ara said trying to get up, but Spilo stopped her, "Stay down, you need to rest; Leon and I will handle this ok?" he asked.

Ara nodded and Spilo gently propped her up against a tree next to Ryan. He got up and faced his brother, "You know Makro, you've done some pretty rotten things to me in the past but…" Spilo clenched his fists, "You've gone too far now! No one hurts my friends and gets away with it! I plan to send you back to the Mamodo World once and for all!" he yelled.

Leon opened Spilo's spell book and Roy opened Makro's black one.

_"Boreria!" _

_"Luxria!"_

The two attacks collided and exploded into nothing. The two Mamodo brothers leapt through the smoke and began to go at it with physical combat.

Eventually, they had each other's hands and were trying to overcome the other, "You _really _care for her, don't you?" Makro said; Spilo's eyes widened,

"You're such a wimp; your mushy little heart is the reason why you've never been able to beat me. You're always busy protecting your precious friends,"

Spilo gritted his teeth, "Shut up…" he muttered.

"Well guess what _little bro, _when this battle is done, you're gonna wish that you never had friends; they only drag you down just like that Ara girl!"

Spilo's eyes widened, and Makro gave a swift kick knocking Spilo to the ground, "And once you're done, I'm gonna make sure she gets sent back to the Mamodo World in the worst possible way; don't be surprised if you can't recognize her back in the Mamodo World because I'll make sure that both she _and _her partner are _permanently_ scarred…physically _and _mentally!"

"NO!" Spilo yelled. He leapt to his feet and landed a hard punch to Makro's cheek that sent him back a few feet.

"I know I've been the weaker twin…I was never able to beat you in anything," Spilo said, his hair covering his eyes, "That's what my friends are for; they support me and watch out for me, unlike _you,_"

Splio clenched his fists and began to shake with rage, "I've been enduring your _crap_ all these years," he spat.

Leon looked down as Spilo's book began to glow a more intense silver, "But you've crossed the line now! As long as I'm in this battle you won't lay a hand on Ara or _anyone_! YOU WILL NEVER TOUCH MY FRIENDS AGAIN!" he yelled and lifted his head.

His green eyes were now full of anger and hate so intense that Makro and Roy both flinched.

Leon stared at the glowing spell book as a new spell appeared in silver, "A new spell," he whispered.

"Sh-shut up! I'll show you what I'm really made of now!" Makro yelled and nodded to Roy, _"Boreria!" _The red light came towards them,

"Alright, the _fourth spell! Loboluxria!" _Leon yelled.

Spilo held up both hands and an enormous explosion of light shot from them; a more powerful version of _Luxria!_ The new spell devoured the red light and struck Makro and Roy directly.

The two got to their feet, "Did they already learn a new spell?" Roy wondered out loud.

"That doesn't matter, we can still take him!" Makro said and held up his hand, _"Boreria!" _Roy yelled.

_"Luxshield!" _Leon yelled. The white shield appeared and stopped the attack.

Roy smirked, they had fallen for it again, _"Forimpact!" _he yelled.

The red beam shot out and shattered the shield, but Spilo and Leon stood their ground. _"Luxria!" _Leon yelled.

_"Boreshield!" _Roy yelled.

The white light hit the red shield harmlessly. Their only hope to win now was to hit them directly again with the fourth spell, but they needed a distraction.

Leon turned the page of the book, _"Statorowave!" _he yelled. Spilo thrust his hands into the air as the air crackled with electricity.

Makro and Roy looked at all the lightning for a second, but that was all Spilo needed, _"Loboluxria!" _Leon yelled and the large blast of light flew towards them.

_"Boreshield!" _Roy yelled at the last second, but Spilo smirked.

Some of the electricity around them began to somehow get absorbed into the _Loboluxria _spell. Spilo then spread his arms apart and the spell split into two. Makro's eyes widened in horror as Spilo directed the two beams of white light around his shield with one heading for him and the other for Roy.

There was a huge explosion and smoke surrounded Roy and Makro. Spilo and Leon walked towards the smoke until a familiar spell rang out, _"Barsmoke!"_

Another large cloud of smoke appeared making it even more difficult to see. By the time it had cleared, Roy and Makro were nowhere to be seen.

"They got away again," Leon said through gritted teeth.

Spilo nodded, "But next time, we're _really _gonna end this fight," he said.

Leon nodded and the two ran back to their injured friends and the rain finally stopped and allowed the sun to peak through. Some of Ara's smaller cuts and bruises were starting to heal, but she was still exhausted.

Spilo offered his hand which she took and slowly got to her feet. Ara then gave Spilo a gently hug, "Thank you…for everything," she said quietly.

Spilo hugged her back, "Anything for a friend like you."

Leon draped Ryan's arm around his shoulder and helped him up, "We better get you to a hospital," Leon said; _that_ was an understatement.

By the time they had gotten to a doctor, most of Ara's minor wounds had disappeared, but her clothers were still in tatters and Ryan convinced her to have the doctor look at her burned back.

Ryan on the other hand was very lucky as the doctor put it; his ribs were nearly broken but they would heal in a day or two. He got his bruises and cuts treated and the four friends walked home together.

They eventually got to where they had to part ways and Leon faced Ryan, "Uh…Sorry…about, you know…hitting you yesterday," he said nervously.

Ryan smiled, "Don't worry about it; no matter how many times that happens, I'll always be there to back you up in a fight," he said.

The two boys' bumped fists as the two Mamodo smiled warmly.

Ara and Ryan waved good-bye to Spilo and Leon and walked home, with only one thing on their mind; how on earth were they going to explain _this _one to mom?

**Yaaaaaaay! Go Spilo! He finally got a chance to shine! :D**

**(Roy and Makro will return in later chapters)**

**Roy, Makro, Spilo and Leon all belong to silverdragon1928**

**Thank you for the OCs and the chapter idea! **

**If any of you others out there have any ideas for chapters involving your OCs, PLEASE tell me! It's hard thinking this stuff up! Hoefull the next few chapters we'll be going to fight a boss Mamodo, like all those story archs in Zatch Bell like with Zophis and Faudo.**

**Please review (you guys are gettin lazy ;)) and enjoy!**


	10. Amusement Park Battle

**Hello my loyal reader! I am so so so so SO sorry about the long wait! Motivation for certain things just seem to come and go for me, ya know? Anyway, I've been re-watching Zatch Bell so my inspiration has been reignited!**

**This chappie starts a few hours after the fight with Roy and Makro that happened last chapter.**

**I would like to thank DeathySophia for the chapter idea! It took FOREVER to write but it was worth it! Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 9<p>

Ara sighed as she sat in the stairwell while listening to Ryan's mom lecture him about what had happened. After arriving home bruised and bandaged, Mom held nothing back in her anger department. They couldn't really blame her since she was really just especially worried that they didn't come home without a word of where they were; Ara had tried to help Ryan explain that they had just gotten jumped by some thugs, but they weren't sure if that worked.

After a while, Ara zoned out but snapped back to attention when Ryan approached her. "Well, what's the word?" Ara asked as she stood up.

"I managed to get you off the hook, but I'm grounded for the weekend," Ryan answered.

Ara's eyes widened, "Oh, I'm so sorry!" she said but Ryan just shrugged, "Don't be; it's nothing compared to any _other _punishments I've gotten in the past."

Ara gave him a sad smile and the two headed upstairs and went to bed, falling asleep instantly after the brutal battle. Since the next day was Saturday, Ara and Ryan slept late. Ara woke up first and found Mom to be in a much better mood, much to her relief. She was making herself breakfast, just as Ryan came downstairs.

The two ate silently and Mom spoke up once they had finished, "Remember Ryan; no leaving the house today _or _tomorrow," she warned.

"I know," Ryan said rolling his eyes and Ara followed him upstairs, "Ara, I don't want you to be cooped up here with me; if you want to go somewhere you can." Ryan said as he entered his room.

Ara's eyes lit up slightly, "Are you sure? I don't want to leave you alone," she pressed but Ryan waved his hand, "It's fine; and besides, I think a _certain_ Mamodo needs to know that you're alright," he said.

Ara smiled and nodded in understanding, "Okay, I won't be gone long," she said and went downstairs.

The sun shone brightly as Ara walked down the street; she breathed in the fresh morning air and relaxed her shoulders. It had been a while since it had been this nice. As she headed to Spilo and Leon's house she spied a familiar young boy at what looked like a lottery stand.

"What'd ya mean I lost again?! Give me another go!"

Ara walked over to him, "Hey Jyan, what are you doing?" she asked.

Jyan looked up at her, "Hey Ara; I'm trying to win this lottery thing. The prize is two tickets to the amusement park that's opening today," he explained.

Ara nodded, "That sounds fun," she said.

"I know, but no matter how many times I try I can't win!" Jyan whined.

"I think I'll give it whirl," Ara said. The man at the stand handed her a random ticket from a bag, "If your number matches the one on the board you win!" the man explained.

Ara nodded and took a scratcher. She scratched off a random five digit number and the man examined it; his eyes brightened, "We have a winner!" he declared.

"Huh?!" Ara and Jyan exclaimed together in disbelief.

"Congratulations! Here are your two tickets to the amusement park! Enjoy!" The man said.

"No fair! How could you do it on the first try?!" Jyan demanded jumping up and down angrily.

Ara gave him a sad smile, "You can have my second ticket if you want," she said, offering him one of the tickets, but Jyan pushed her hand away, "No, you keep it; I'm gonna keep trying until I win!" he declared giving her a determined smile.

Ara nodded, "Alright, good luck then; I'll see you around!" Ara said, and continued on her way towards Spilo's house. As she walked, she examined the tickets; this fair sounded really fun. She wanted to take Ryan, but now that he was grounded, she would have to think of someone else to take. She pocketed the tickets as a rustle was heard in the trees above her.

She rolled her eyes and stopped, "I know you're there Chase," she said.

She turned just as the Mamodo jumped down to the ground, "How do you keep guessing?" he grumbled.

Ara shrugged, "Easy; you're the only person who spies on people from _trees_," she said, "Anyway, I can't hang with you today; I have plans."

Chase crossed his arms, "You're just saying that 'cause you know I'll beat you at my next challenge," he said smugly. Ever since they had met, Chase seemed obsessed with the challenge of proving he was better and that their strength _wasn't _perfectly matched. Almost every day, when she was alone, he would challenge her to pointless races and competitions that always ended up tied. Usually, Ara was always up for his challenges; but after a while they began to get on her nerves.

"It'll just end in a tie again and you know it; I'll play your little games later okay?" she said and walked off, but she couldn't help but notice that Chase seemed to be a little on the pale side; maybe it was just the sun playing tricks on her. She managed to arrive at Spilo's house without Chase following her; she approached Spilo's door and knocked.

The familiar Mamodo answered the door, "Hey; how're you feeling?" he asked.

"Much better now," Ara answered.

Spilo nodded, "That's good…where's Ryan?" he asked looking around a bit.

Ara made a face, "Well…" she explained the whole mom grounding him situation and Spilo frowned slightly, "That doesn't seem fair," he said.

"I know; but I guess mother knows best," Ara said shrugging, when she remembered something, "That reminds me; I won two tickets to the new amusement park that's opening today. Ryan obviously can't come with me, so would you like to come?" she asked.

Spilo's eyes lit up with excitement, "You bet! Leon's gonna be out today, so I've got nothing to do!" he said.

"Awesome! Let's go!" Ara said and the two ran off towards the park.

* * *

><p>Their eyes widened as they entered the park; it was full of rides, food stands, and all kinds of games with prizes. "What should we go on first?" Ara asked.<p>

"I don't know; we don't have these in the Mamodo World," Spilo said.

Ara's gaze fell on a nearby Tilt-a-Whirl, "Maybe we should try some small rides before going on the big rides; how about that one?" she asked pointing.

"Looks good to me," Spilo said.

After about an hour the two had ridden the Tilt-a-Whirl, the Bumper Cars, and the Ferris Wheel. They got some cotton candy to eat when Ara spotted a familiar little boy with a teenager who waved at them and Ara waved back.

"Who're they?" Spilo asked.

Ara had completely forgotten that the two had never met, "The little one is Jyan, a Mamodo; the other is Josh, his partner. They moved near Ryan's school; don't worry though, they're on our side." She explained.

Spilo nodded, "It's good to know there are more Mamodo out there who are good," he said.

Ara nodded, "Yeah, anyway let's go, next up is the Jet Coaster!" she said. According to the other riders, this roller coaster was supposed to super fast with tons of loops and corkscrews thrown in at random! Who _wouldn't_ want to go on a ride like that?

They threw away their cotton candy and made their way towards the coaster when Ara spotted another familiar face, "Chase?"

The Mamodo, who was leaning on a railing near the line for the coaster, turned around and faced them with a slight frown, "Oh it's you," he said. He looked a very pale and sickly; it hadn't been the light after all.

"You don't look too good; are you alright?" Ara asked, as the two walked towards him.

"Who's this?" Spilo asked.

"This is Chase; he's a Mamodo too," Ara answered before stepping towards Chase, "You look really pale, are you getting sick?" she asked reaching out and touching his forehead; his skin was burning up!

Chase slapped her hand away, "Shut up, I am _not _sick! I don't _get _sick!" he snapped. Spilo frowned at the Mamodo's attitude; was Ara sure he was on their side?

Ara frowned, "Judging by the sweat and hot head, I'd say 'sick' is a pretty accurate term for you right now!" she shot back; why couldn't this Mamodo just swallow his pride for once and let someone help him?

Chase scoffed, "Please; I'm perfectly healthy, you're just trying to make me feel weak." He said.

A sly smile came to Spilo's face as he thought of a plan, "Well, since you're _clearly _not sick you wouldn't mind riding the Jet coaster with us, would you?" he asked.

Ara caught his drift and smiled too, "Yeah; you're tough and all, I'm sure you can handle it," she said giving him an elbow nudge.

Chase's skin seemed to grow even paler as he glanced at the huge ride before smiling confidently, "Fine, I accept your challenge!" he said.

The three got into the line for the coaster and Ara and Spilo gave each other a small fist bump; this was gonna be _good_. They were snapped out of their thoughts at the sound of crying at the end of the line. They turned around to see Jyan crying and staring up at the height requirement board as he was too small to ride the Jet coaster.

Josh stood behind him, trying to console the Mamodo, "C'mon Jyan, there are plenty of other rides that you can ride," he said.

"It's not fair! What do you mean I can't ride because I'm too small?! This place is discriminating against the height-challenged!" he yelled, his little arms flailing, "Why couldn't the author make me taller?! I'm almost nine, I'm practically a grown-up!" **(Don't blame me! _I _didn't create you!) **

"Poor kid," Spilo said with a sad smile. Ara nodded and giggled slightly as Josh dragged the whining child away from the ride and the three got strapped down into the seats.

"Sure you can take this Chase?" Ara asked looking in the seat behind her, 'I just hope we don't make his condition worse,' she thought.

"I'll show you; I can handle anything you wimps throw at me!" Chase said.

Ara frowned, 'On second thought;_ let him burn_!' she thought angrily. Everyone held on tightly and the ride zoomed off.

* * *

><p><strong><em> (One dizzying and awesome coaster ride later)<em> **

"That was AWESOME!" Ara yelled with excitement.

"Best ride ever!" Spilo agreed as they exited the ride.

"We should totally go on again later!" Ara said. Spilo nodded and the two looked behind them to see Chase stumbling towards them looking much worse for wear.

Ara made a face, "You think we overdid it?" she asked.

"Possibly," Spilo said, feeling a pang of guilt as well.

They went up to the Mamodo who looked like he was about to pass out, "Okay, it's official; you're sick," Ara said.

"I am not!" Chase shot back, stumbling a bit to be caught by Spilo, "Dude, you really need to rest," he said.

Chase shook him away, "Shut up! Don't think I'd stoop as low as to let wimps like _you _help me!" he yelled.

"Oh really?" a voice said. The three teens turned around to see a very…peculiar looking man. He had shoulder length blonde hair, and wore bright red pants with a royal blue long sleeved shirt **(fail fashion sense is fail…)**.

But what really got their attention was that beside him was a large wolfish creature with dark brown fur. The man smirked, "It's no surprise that a wimp like you has to be helped by others; it just shows how weak you are," he said.

"What'd you say?!" Chase demanded, "I happen to be one of the strongest Mamodo in the Mamodo World!" The man's eyes glistened and Ara and Spilo stiffened.

"Oh I'm sure you're strong…but that doesn't change the fact that you're short," he said.

Chase clenched his fists, "Say that again," he growled through clenched teeth.

"I said you're a _shorty!" _The man said loudly. Before anyone could react, Chase ran up and landed a square punch on the man's jaw. Ara and Spilo ran up and held him back before he could do anymore damage and the man got to his feet rubbing his sore jaw, "I thought you were smarter than that…but now I have no choice," he said, pulling out a dark brown spell book.

The three Mamodo's eyes widened as he opened it and began to glow, "Allow me to introduce myself; I am Francis, and Wolfe and I plan to send all three of you back to the Mamodo World!" he said.

The animal, called Wolfe stepped forwards, _"Radosen!" _Francis yelled.

Wolfe opened his mouth and a small metal ball flew towards them. It hit the ground and exploded on impact causing the three teens to fly backwards.

Ara and Spilo got up and helped Chase to his feet, "We've got to get out of the park; we can't have any people get caught in this!" Spilo yelled. Ara nodded and the three ran towards the exit with Francis and Wolfe in hot pursuit.

"This is bad; without our partners we're sitting ducks!" Ara yelled.

"Yeah, but that can't stop us from fighting!" Chase said.

The three got out of the amusement park and into a large field nearby, "Did they follow us?" Ara asked panting.

_"Radosen!" _

Another explosion appeared, throwing them backwards again. The three looked up to see the enemy coming towards them, "Excellent; a nice wide space for us to fight," Francis said turning the page of his spell book, "It's a shame your book owners are nowhere in sight; this could've been much more interesting," He sighed, "Oh well, this will have to do; _Radosen!" _

"Move!" Ara yelled. The Mamodo managed to scatter just in time to avoid another attack.

_"Chikeru!" _

A blast of blue energy came from nowhere and slammed Francis and Wolfe. Everyone looked to see Josh holding his dark blue book and Jyan with his mouth unhinged as his eyes went back to normal.

"You three okay?" Josh called.

The three nodded, while Jyan frowned at their opponent, "Man, you'd think the author would have a better fashion sense than _this_!" **(Shut up!)**

"Now's not the time for your crazy talk!" Josh yelled.

"Fine, I just hope we're actually _useful _in this chapter!" Jyan said. **(How many times to I have to say I'm sorry?!)**

_"Chikeru!" _Josh yelled and the blue blast was fired again; Francis and Wolfe barely dodged it. Spilo took this chance to run towards them and attempt to land a punch on Wolfe, but Francis was ready, _"Fang Radosen!" _he yelled.

Wolfe opened his mouth revealing his rows of sharp teeth with lit up and grew in size. Spilo jumped back just before the large fangs could snap down on him; but the moment Wolfe closed his mouth, another explosion took place blowing Spilo back.

Ara helped him up and Chase rolled his eyes, "Never let a rookie do a pro's job," he muttered and ran towards Wolfe. Unfortunately, due to his condition, his eyesight began to blur and he staggered in his step.

He tried to shake it off and continued to run when he heard Francis again, _"Radosen!" _

Chase didn't have time to react but was tackled to the ground by Ara just in time.

Josh took this time to attack again, _"Chikelga!" _he yelled.

A concentrated beam of blue energy shot towards the enemy and hit them head on. Francis and Wolfe fell to the ground and slowly got back to their feet, "You'll pay for this! _Radosen!" _Francis yelled.

Josh nodded to Jyan and the two split into different directions, _"Chimardo!" _Josh yelled.

Jyan's eyes rolled backwards and a swirling blue orb came out of his mouth.

Thinking it was attack, Francis quickly yelled, _"Radosen!"_

The explosive metal orb flew towards the still unconscious Jyan and the orb in front of him opened to form a small vortex. The metal ball flew into the vortex and vanished completely.

Francis' face went from a look of shock to anger; he turned to Josh, "Now I'll get you; _Claws Radosen!" _he yelled. Wolfe's claws lit up and grew in size like his teeth and ran towards the human.

Jyan's eyes returned to normal just in time to see Wolfe leap towards his partner, "JOSH!" he yelled.

Josh tried to run, but he knew he wouldn't escape unscathed. A large explosion rang through the air blowing Josh to the ground, but he felt no pain. He looked behind him to see Spilo standing over him, blocking the explosive claws with his bare arms that were covered in burns from the explosion. Everyone's eyes widened in absolute shock as Spilo shook a bit and gritted his teeth from the pain. The Mamodo pulled back his fist, and punched Wolfe as hard as he could. The animal let out a strangled gasp and flew backwards towards Francis and Spilo staggered a bit before falling to his knees.

He used his arms to support him, panting hard; Josh put a hand on his shoulder, "You okay?" he asked with concern.

"I'll be fine," Spilo said with a weak smile. Chase stared in disbelief; why would that Mamodo risk his life trying to protect a human he didn't even know and wasn't even his partner? It didn't make sense; this was a _war. _You weren't supposed to make friends, because it ultimately led to fighting one another; it was pointless.

"I'm going in to help," Ara said, snapping him out of his thoughts, "You stay here; we don't want your condition to get worse," she said.

She got up and ran next to Jyan, watching for another attack.

Wolfe slowly got to his feet and growled loudly at Spilo, "So, you think you're brave, huh?" Francis asked, "But bravery will get you nowhere in this fight! _Claws Radosen!" _he yelled.

"You should watch where you're opponents are! _Chikeru!" _Josh yelled. The beam of blue energy hit Wolfe causing the spell to cancel out.

Francis smirked, "Don't worry, I do! _Tail Radosen!" _he yelled.

Josh's eyes widened as he comprehended what the spell meant, "Jyan! Look out!" he yelled, but the Mamodo was still unconscious from the spell. Wolfe's tail lit up and grew in size and lifted into the air. Jyan's eyes returned to normal just as Wolfe's tail began its descent.

"Look out!" Ara yelled and grabbed Jyan as the tail smashed the _Chimardo _portal as it could only absorb projected attacks. She managed to get away, but let out a cry of pain as the explosion burned her back, shielding Jyan as they fell to the ground.

Jyan squirmed out from under Ara as the girl got to her knees, "You okay?" Jyan asked.

"I'm fine, it just grazed me," she said, panting slightly.

"Well, we have many brave souls here today," Francis said, "But like I said; bravery won't get you anywhere!" he said before casting another spell.

Chase watched from his spot as the fight raged on, 'Why?' he said to himself, 'Why are they trying so hard to protect each other?'

Jyan got in front of Ara and caught Wolfe's exploding claws and taking the explosion before throwing the animal across the field.

'It doesn't matter if their friends. Eventually, they'll _have _to fight,'

Josh cast _Rachishiru _creating the large shield to protect Ara and Jyan from another blow while Spilo managed to land a punch on Francis.

'I want to get stronger…'

Chase clenched his fists as he watched the explosions begin to over whelm the others as Ara jumped in front of Spilo shielding him from a direct hit,

'But how? I want to fight…but how can I?'

_"Ganzuru!"_

The large gun appeared in Chase's hands and he fired a direct hit at Wolfe causing everyone to look in shock. "Reira…?" Chase asked, looking at the gun in his hands.

A familiar figure flipped over Francis and landed in front of Chase holding a glowing olive green book, "You didn't think I'd miss out on another fight did you?" Reira asked with a smirk.

"Glad you could make it," Chase said, smirking back.

"Who's that?" Jyan asked. "Reira, Chase's partner," Ara answered smiling in relief.

Reira's eyes scanned the area and noticed the three other Mamodo, "Well, looks like you've been busy making friends today," she said.

Chase frowned, "Shut up!" he yelled blushing slightly, "I don't make friends…"

Reira shrugged, "Whatever you say; how about we end this battle before we get really banged up?" she asked.

Chase nodded as his book began to glow, _"Ganzuru!" _Reira yelled.

Josh took this time to attack as well, _"Chikeru!" _he yelled.

The two blue beams landed directly on their opponents and Ara and Spilo took the opportunity to land some more physical attacks until the enemy was panting hard.

"That's it! I won't allow us to be defeated by the likes of you!" Francis yelled causing the book to glow brighter, _"Ganzu Radosen!" _he yelled.

Wolfe sat down, faced the sky and opened his mouth. Hundreds of explosive metal orbs flew into the sky and soared towards the others like missiles. Everyone scrambled in alarm trying to avoid the multiple explosions as they detonated left and right. Jyan could tell that Spilo and Ara were pretty worn out and needed their help and faced Josh who nodded in agreement.

They ran in front of the two Mamodo and faced the sky that was filled with the oncoming explosives, _"Rachshiru!" _he yelled and the octagon shaped shield appeared above them. The shield easily managed to block the explosions headed for them, but Chase and Reira weren't so lucky. They managed to avoid most the bombs, but they didn't get away completely unscathed.

When they explosions were finally done, Reira was panting hard and on her knees, covered with burns. Chase's eyes widened in alarm as Francis and Wolfe turned to them.

The others noticed as well, but had no time to react as Francis yelled, _"Claws Radosen!" _

Wolfe's claws grew and he leapt towards Reira and the spell book. Chase got up and ran towards her as flashes of Ara, Spilo and Jyan protecting one another flew through his mind.

He got in front of her with his arms outstretched; if there ever was one person he had to protect it, it was Reira. The girl who took him in, kept him going in battles, and helped him grow continually stronger…his one true friend. He was never going to allow her to get hurt, no matter the cost!

Reira's eyes widened as Chase's spell book began to glow brightly. "Josh…is that…?" Jyan asked.

Josh nodded as Reira opened the book revealing the new olive colored symbols translating the _third spell_, "Chase has learned a new spell!"

Wolfe raised his claw to strike Chase and Reira knew it was now or never, _"Gashirudo!" _she yelled.

Chase's hands lit up blue and he thrust them at Wolfe. A large round shield of blue energy appeared completely blocking Wolfe's attack.

"What!?" Francis cried in shock as Wolfe backed up a few steps. The shield disappeared and Chase looked at his hands.

He grinned and clenched them before turning to Reira, "How about we end this?" he asked.

Reira smiled and got to her feet, "Here we go then! _Ganzuron!" _she yelled.

The two missile launchers appeared in Chase's hands and fired the two missiles towards them. The missiles hit resulting in a large cloud of smoke. Reira nodded to Josh saying that it was up to him now.

Josh nodded and opened Jyan's book, "Alright, let's finish this! _Gaou Chikelga!" _he yelled.

Jyan's eyes rolled back into his head as an enormous amount of blue energy burst forth. It formed the shape of a large wolf with red eyes that charged towards the enemy with a roar. There was a huge boom and the smoke cleared to reveal Francis and Wolfe lying on the ground, the brown spell book up in tan flames. Wolfe vanished and Francis ran off in fear leaving the group alone; victory was theirs!

* * *

><p>The sun began to set as the group stood outside the amusement park entrance, "Thanks for all your help Reira," Josh said holding out his hand.<p>

Reira smiled and shook it, "No problem, it was nice meeting you," she said.

"Sorry about the whole Jet coaster thing," Spilo said rubbing the back of his head.

Ara nodded, "Make sure to get lots of rest; we don't want you getting sick again!" she said and giggled as Chase exploded again, "I AM NOT SICK!"

Chase quickly calmed down. He blushed slightly and looked away, "Uh…t-thanks for… helping out with the fight," he said rubbing the back of his head, "I guess…y-your stronger that you look," he managed to choke out.

"What do you know, the big and strong Chase just thanked someone; I guess you really _are _changing!" Reira teased.

"SH-SHUT UP!" Chase yelled, blushing even more and everyone laughed.

"See you guys around!" Ara called as the group all parted ways and waved.

Ara took a deep breath and headed for home making herself a quick mental note; avoid Mom so she won't have a fit. But then again, Ryan probably wasn't going to be too happy about this

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Woo-hoo! Chase is FINALLY catching up with the spells! :D I hoped you liked Josh and Jyan's return. I designed Francis as a sort of crossover between Folgore and France from Hetalia, cause they're eerily similar aren't they? Also, t<strong>**hat line, 'discriminating against the height challenged' is my all time FAVORITE line in the whole series! I thought it fitting for Jyan to say it since he's so young.**

**Jyan: Hey! Take that back!  
><strong>

**Me: Chill dude, I gave you some more screen time than you're LAST appearance didn't I? Oh, and if you break the fourth wall again-**

**Jyan: Nothing you can say will stop me! Admit it, the readers love it!**

**Josh: Shut up and just let her do her job!**

** Jyan: WHAT?! You're taking HER side now?! What kind of partner are you?!**

**Me: *rolls eyes* Spilo belongs to silverdragon1928, Chase and Reira belong to DeathySophia, and Josh and Jyan belong to thatguy331. *whispers* By the way man, your OCs are quite a handful...**

**Jyan: I heard that!**

**Me: Just shut up for the next five minutes and I'll give you some fish sticks! *sigh* Anyway, I'm having trouble thinking up a good story arc for this so if you have suggestions PLEASE speak up! I'm thinking of kind of combining the motives of Zophis and Ren (or whatever his name is) from the Faudo arc (the manipulating hearts thing and holding the book owners hostage to the good Mamodo do what they say), but if you have your own idea don't be shy!**

**Jyan: Remember to review!**


	11. The Flight of the Dragon

**YES! I did it! I got a new chapter up and I have an idea for the story arc that's NOT going to copy the anime! I feel accomplished! Anyway, SO sorry for the wait, enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 10<p>

"I am not letting you out of my sight _ever_ again, got that?" Ryan asked coldly as he and Ara walked towards school. "I heard you the first few hundred times man," she muttered.

Since Saturday, the two hadn't been on such good terms lately. As she expected, Ryan was not happy when Ara entered his bedroom covered in burns from a battle that he couldn't help her with. After a brief yelling session they had left each other alone to cool off, but that didn't seem to work at all.

* * *

><p>"What were you thinking?" Leon was saying, resulting in a sigh from Spilo as they walked towards Leon's college, "Fighting a battle without me there to help? What if Roy and Makro had shown up?" he demanded. "They're long gone Leon, they wouldn't have shown up! Seriously you're getting <em>way<em> too paranoid about them!" Spilo retorted.

It hadn't been the best day for either Mamodo. They could only pray that this little spat wouldn't affect their spells should a Mamodo come to challenge them.

* * *

><p>Ara and Ryan arrived at school without saying a word to one another when they spotted two familiar boys walking up to the door as well, "Hey, It's Josh and Jyan!" Ara exclaimed. The said boys turned towards them and walked towards them smiling, "What are you two doing here?" Ryan asked.<p>

"Well, we finally finished settling into the house so I can finally start going to school again," Josh said before frowning at Jyan, "But _some _bratty Mamodo won't get off my back about leaving him alone!" he growled. "But Jooooooooosh!" Jyan whined as he tugged on Josh's pant leg, "It's so booooooring when you're at school!"

Ara smiled pitifully and knelt in front of the young Mamodo, "If you want, you could come hang with Spilo and me while we wait for school to be out," she offered. Jyan's eyes lit up, "Really? Awesome!" he said, completely forgetting his sadness. Ara nodded; it wouldn't hurt to hang out with Jyan for a day, plus she could stand a distraction from Ryan.

Ara and Jyan ran towards the back of the school where they met Spilo and the three went off on their way. Ara sighed in relief, "I don't know about you, but I really am glad to be away from Ryan; he's been giving such a hard time about that battle in the amusement park." She said.

Spilo nodded, "Same with Leon; he's just been making up excuses like saying that Roy and Makro would've shown up and stuff like that," Jyan looked confused, "What are you talking about? Why would your partners be mad about you fighting a battle?" he asked.

"They were just mad that we fought alone without coming to get them and our Spell books; I know they were worried, but I think they were overreacting a little bit." Ara explained. Spilo nodded, "Besides, we couldn't just bail on you, Josh and Chase and leave you with a Mamodo that strong; I don't think it would have ended well," Spilo pointed out.

Jyan nodded, "Yeah; it's pretty surprising how strong Mamodo can be without their spells. Josh and I have battled quite a bit and we learned that sometimes you don't need spells at all." He said before folding his arms behind his head, "Now let's find something exciting to do before our readers think this chapter is filler."

* * *

><p>Ryan and Josh sat in the hallway as they waited for the morning bell to ring. "So, Ara told me about the battle you all had on Saturday." Ryan said. Josh nodded, "It was pretty intense, but we managed to scrape through okay; we also met another Mamodo and his partner who learned a new spell during the fight," he said. "You mean Chase and Reira?" Ryan asked.<p>

Josh nodded, "They seem pretty tough, but then again, that wolf Mamodo was no cake-walk." He said. Ryan looked at the ground with a small frown, "I still can't believe that Ara didn't come get me," he said, "Sure I was grounded, but I'd rather get in trouble with my mom than let Ara fight a battle alone." Ryan slowly curled his hand into a fist, "If something happened to her…I don't want to think about it," he said, "Maybe I'm being overprotective, but I don't want to see her badly hurt…like she was after we fought Roy and Makro…" he trailed off.

Josh frowned, "Who are Roy and Makro?" he asked. Ryan told him about the two's connection to Spilo and Leon and the intense battle they had, "They wanted to use us as bait for Spilo and Leon; Ara was badly hurt…I wasn't sure she was going to make it," He said, "When she came home on Saturday all burned from that battle…I remembered that battle with Makro and got so…scared that time was repeating itself." He explained.

Josh nodded in understanding, "She's that special to you huh?" he asked and Ryan nodded. "I feel the same way about Jyan," Josh said, "The kid may be a pain in the ass but he's got a good heart. He's so innocent and young, I would hate to see anything bad happen to him." He explained. His face turned serious as he turned to Ryan, "But you have to be careful to not hold on to Ara too tightly," he said.

"What do you mean?" Ryan asked. "This Mamodo battle will keep going on until a new King is chosen and some Mamodo will take desperate measures to claim that title. But you have to remember; win or lose, when the battle's over, you'll have to say good-bye at some point." Josh explained. Ryan's eyes widened, he hadn't thought of that; Josh was right, even if Ara _did _win the battle, she would still have to go back to the Mamodo world.

Josh looked at the ceiling, "The outcome of every Mamodo battle is never the same, so you always have to be prepared to say good-bye for good; if you're not, your heart may not recover from the blow." He said. Ryan nodded seeing his point; he did care for Ara. She had given him company, and helped him improve his social skills after he had moved here. But with every battle that they fought…they would have to be prepared to say farewell.

"Also…" Josh spoke up again, "That Mamodo we fought at the amusement park was pretty tough; without Ara and Spilo we probably would've been toast. Ara and Spilo didn't tell you because they wanted to help keep Jyan and Chase from losing their books…and you as well," Ryan's eyes widened. "Ara and Spilo probably knew how dangerous that battle was going to be, so to keep you and Leon safe, they kept it to themselves." Josh said.

Realization hit Ryan like an arrow as he remembered what Ara said to him during their first battle:

_"I don't want you to suffer because of me. I want to protect you. Your safety is much more important than this stupid fight; because we're friends aren't we?__"_

All Ara cared about was keeping her friends safe. She didn't tell Ryan to keep him safe, and fought alone to keep Jyan, Spilo, and Chase safe. The bell rang, snapping Ryan out of his thoughts and he and Josh hurried to class.

* * *

><p>"I never knew this place had a pond!" Ara exclaimed as she and her two friends sat on the edge of a small dock that rested in a beautiful pond that was hidden away from the rest of the neighborhood. Spilo nodded, "Yeah, it's really peaceful." "But I bet the water's freezing," Jyan said.<p>

"You don't know that," Ara said. "I mean it," Jyan said, "Every time I go to a pond the water is like freakin' liquid ice!" "Jyan, water _is _liquid ice," Spilo said with a smirk. "That doesn't mean that it's warm!" Jyan protested.

Ara reached down and touched the water; it was a bit chilly, but actually felt really pleasant with the sun beating down. "It's not cold at all, it's actually nice," Ara said. "What?! No way, you're lying!" Jyan said jumping to his feet. "Why would I lie about _this_?" Ara asked, gesturing to the water. "I've been in millions of ponds to know that there all cold," Jyan answered, crossing his arms over his chest. "Well I happen to have water _spells_, therefore I know more about water than you ever will; just feel it." Ara said dryly.

Jyan shook his head, "No way, I'm not fallin' for it!" he said. "Do it," Ara repeated.

"No."

"Just put your hand in,"

"How about…no?"

"Do it,"

"Nope,"

"Jyan-"

"I'm not doing it,"

"Just reach-"

"Nope; I'll keep saying this throughout the whole chapter if I have to."

Ara sighed, "Fine, _don't_ feel it," she said before shouting and pointing, "LOOK JYAN, A TEN FOOT LONG FISH!" Jyan ran to the edge of the dock, "WHERE?!" "SIKE!" Ara yelled and shoved Jyan into the water.

Ara and Spilo laughed as Jyan resurfaced and started flailing, "Help! (blub blub) Help! (blub) I can't swim!" He yelled as he waved his arms frantically as he started to sink causing Ara and Spilo to stop laughing. Ara leaned towards the water as far as she could with her hand out stretched, "Grab my hand Jyan!" she yelled.

Jyan managed to move over and grab her hand with both of his. Jyan then ceased struggling and gave the girl a smirk; realization hit Ara and a second later she was flipped into the water. She resurfaced next to Jyan who started laughing, "You actually fell for it! That was HILARIOUS!" Ara smirked, "Two can play at this game!" she said and dragged Jyan underwater.

They wrestled for a while before resurfacing to see Spilo laughing his head off, "You two are a riot!" he laughed. Ara and Jyan looked at each other and nodded as Spilo's legs were still dangling over the water. While the Mamodo was still laughing, Ara and Jyan quietly swam up to him, "You're right; so you're coming in too!" Jyan said. With that said, Ara and Jyan latched onto Spilo's ankles and with a sharp yank, the Mamodo fell into the water. Spilo resurfaced and frowned playfully, "Not cool you guys!" he said, "Now you're gonna pay!" "Bring it on!" Ara said.

The three Mamodo laughed and proceeded to splash each other and chase each other in the warm water with the bright sun beaming down on them. The playing continued for what felt like hours until the pond was covered by a shadow. The three Mamodo looked up and their smiles' faded as a large dragon-like shape flew over them.

They watched from the water as the dragon flew away from the pond and towards the neighborhood. The three Mamodo looked at each other, "I don't like the looks of that guy," Spilo said. Jyan nodded, "Yeah; but man, leave it to the author to interrupt the best game ever with a conflict." **(That's how stories work honey; get over it.)**

"We better check up on Ryan and Josh at school," Ara said and no one argued. The three Mamodo climbed out of the pond and ran back towards the high school, ignoring their dripping wet clothes.

* * *

><p>Ryan sighed as he listened to his teacher talk. Josh seemed pretty bored as well. Ryan was about to put his head on his desk when a loud boom was heard outside causing the students to scream. Everyone ran to the window to see what was going on as Josh and Ryan pushed their way to the front so they could see. They saw a huge black dragon on the ground with a man walking beside it. He had black hair that passed his shoulders slightly and wore a plain white t-shirt and jeans.<p>

"Shit…" Josh muttered. "What?" Ryan asked. Josh pointed and Ryan's eyes widened; the man was holding a yellow spell book! Without another word, Ryan and Josh took their Spell books out of their backpacks and ran into the hallway towards the door without anyone noticing. They hid in one of the doorways as the man yelled out, "Those of you in there who know who we are, come out and fight!"

Josh and Ryan spotted Ara, Spilo and Jyan running towards the school so the two teens stepped outside, "Looking for us?" Josh asked, causing the man and the dragon to turn around. Ara, Jyan and Spilo ran in front of the two teens and took fighting positions; Ara noticed that the man's eyes seemed to gleam when he looked at Jyan, but she had other things to worry about. "Why are you all wet?" Josh asked them. "Tell you later, we have a fight on our hands," Spilo answered.

"What do you want?" Ryan asked. The man smirked, "Why to fight of course," he said and without another word, he opened his yellow book that started to glow, _"Zasen!" _The dragon opened its mouth and a large orb of electricity flew towards the group at top speed.

_"Luxshield!" _a familiar voice yelled. Instinctively, Spilo ran in front of his friends and held up his hands as the white circular shield appeared, blocking the attack successfully. Out of the corner of his eye, Spilo saw Leon running towards them, gold Spell book in hand. "Right on time," Spilo said smiling as Leon stood behind him.

The shield disappeared and Ryan glared at the man, "Who do you think you are?! We can't fight here, there are too many people!" he yelled; he didn't want a full blown Mamodo battle to happen at his school where innocent people could get hurt. The man smirked, "You should know by now kid; with Mamodo battles it doesn't matter where we are or who's in the way, all that matters in winning!" he said, "As for who I am, just call us Melvin and Draco." He pointed to the dragon that let out a roar.

The three teams ran out of the doorway so they were beside the school; that way, none of their attacks would directly hit it or any of the students inside. "I gotta say, I wasn't expecting the author to throw an _electric_ dragon at us," Jyan said. **(I'll take that as a compliment)**

Josh rolled his eyes, "You pick the worst moments to be weird," he said as he opened the dark blue Spell book, _"Chikeru!" _The blast of energy flew from Jyan's mouth towards the dragon who took the hit. Draco shook his head as the spell didn't even seem to faze him. _"Zaruga!" _Melvin yelled. Draco opened his mouth again as a beam of electricity flew from it, _"Rachishiru!" _Josh yelled and the octagon shaped shield appeared managing to block the attack.

Ryan opened Ara's book and looked at Ara who was thinking the same thing; their water spells were obviously not gonna work here because of the electric attacks Draco had. Ryan nodded to Leon whose book began to glow, _"Statorowave!" _he yelled. Spilo caused the air to crackle with electricity which, as usual, effectively drew the enemy's attention. Ara's book then began to glow, _"Arisword!" _Ryan yelled causing the ice sword to appear in Ara's hand.

Ara grasped her sword and ran towards the dragon. Draco and Melvin realized the distraction too late as Ara slashed the dragon with her sword, drawing blood with the fine sharp blade. While Ara attempted to slay the dragon as much as she could before the spell wore off, Josh took the opportunity and formed a plan, "Jyan, look at the ground there!" he said. Jyan complied and Josh turned the page of the Spell book, _"Chimardo!" _he yelled.

Jyan opened his mouth and a blue orb shot from it. It landed on the ground and created the portal on the ground. "What spell is that?" Leon asked. "You'll see; let's move!" Josh said. Jyan and Josh ran behind the dragon and Jyan aimed at the ground again, _"Chimardo!" _Another portal appeared behind Draco.

Meanwhile, Ara had managed to land a few more hits onto Draco, but the dragon had had enough and swatted Ara to the ground, _"Zasen!" _Melvin yelled and the orb of electricity rocketed towards her. "Leon, quick!" Spilo yelled as he ran towards Ara. _"Loboluxria!" _Spilo held up both hands and the powerful beam of light hit the orb.

The two attacks hovered in mid-air for a moment trying to overcome the other until they both exploded sending Ara and Spilo flying backwards. They got to their feet easily and Jyan ran up beside them, "Ara, when you get a chance, jump in that portal I made over there," he said nodding his head towards said portal. "Why?" Ara asked. "You'll see," Jyan said with a smirk as his book began to glow again,

_"Chikelga!" _

_"Loboluxria!"_

The two spells flew through the air and landed a direct hit. Ara took the opportunity to run towards the portal Jyan had made but Melvin spotted her, "You're not getting away; _Zaruga!" _he yelled. The beam of electricity flew towards Ara and the Mamodo knew it was now or never. With one last leap, she dived into the portal, barely dodging the attack.

"What?! Where'd she go?!" Melvin yelled. "Over here!" Melvin and Draco whirled around to see Ara flying out of the portal that was set behind them, wielding her sword. With a loud cry, Ara plunged the sword into Draco's back resulting in a howl of pain from the dragon. She pulled out her sword that was now wet with blood and jumped over the dragon towards her friends before her sword disappeared. "Nice plan!" Ryan exclaimed, giving Josh a thumbs up.

Draco stumbled on his feet and Melvin glared daggers at his six opponents, "That's it; I'm ending this now, _Zaruku!" _he yelled. Josh comprehended the spell and his eyes widened, "Move!" he yelled, pushing Ryan and Leon to run. Draco was suddenly completely covered with electricity. In the blink of an eye, he flew towards the three Mamodo and rammed into them.

The three screamed as electricity coursed through them; they were still damp from their dip in the pond so the electricity was more painful than usual. The three Mamodo fell to their knees, smoking and flinching from any leftover shocks. Draco stood over them, still covered in electricity waiting for them to make a move and the three book owners nodded; it was time to end this.

"Still not done eh?" Melvin asked, "Well, we'll fix that; _"Zaruga!" _Draco opened his mouth and the beam came straight towards them, _"Proteshield!" _Ryan yelled. "Grab onto me!" Ara yelled as her eyes turned blue. She held up her arms and Jyan and Spilo latched onto each of her arms. The giant water vortex appeared and absorbed the attack. The water coils appeared behind it and connected to Ara's arms as well as Jyan's and Spilo's. The coils turned white as the energy was divided and transferred into the three Mamodo, not completely healing them, but enough to finish the fight.

_"Statorowave!" _Spilo caused the sky to fill with electricity again and Leon called out another spell, _"Loboluxria!" _Spilo jumped back away from Draco and fired the large beam of light before it absorbed the electricity in the air and allowed Spilo to split the beam into two. He directed one to go towards Draco while the other flew through Jyan's portal and appeared behind Draco.

The two attacks landed a direct hit, the beam from behind hitting that same spot Ara had stabbed causing the electricity to vanish. "Let's finish this! _Gaou Chikelga!" _Josh yelled, pouring all his energy into Jyan's book.

Jyan's eyes rolled back and the large blue wolf emerged, bounding towards Draco. Melvin turned the page of his book, "We're not finished yet; the boss will kill us if we don't get what we came for!" he said, "_Dioga Zaruku!" _Draco was covered in electricity once again, only this time he grew bigger in size. The blue wolf leapt towards the electric dragon and the two collided resulting in a huge explosion, blowing everyone back.

When the smoke cleared, Draco and Melvin were covered with burns but still standing, there book without a scratch. "Dammit…they're too…strong…" Josh whispered before his legs collapsed under him. Ryan and Leon caught him before he hit the ground, "Josh, what's wrong?" Ryan asked. "Don't worry…" Josh said weakly, "I've just…used up a lot of energy,"

Melvin took in Josh's tired state and closed his Spell book, "I think now, we'll take what we came for," he said before climbing onto Draco's back, "Let's go!" he yelled and the dragon took flight. Before anyone could even comprehend what was going on, Draco swooped along the ground and picked up both Jyan and Josh in his claws. "Hey! Put us down!" Jyan yelled as the dragon began to take off.

Ara, Spilo, Leon, and Ryan all took off after the dragon, "Put them down!" Spilo yelled. Draco continued to fly higher as Jyan kicked and struggled in the dragon's grasp; how was he going to get out of this? Josh was on the brink of blacking out so he couldn't use any of his spells! Ara and Spilo were starting to tire as well; that battle had really taken its toll on them. That last explosion had knocked the wind out of all of them.

Ryan opened Ara's book as they ran to use a spell, but Leon stopped him, "It's too risky, you might hit Josh or Jyan!" Ryan growled and closed the book. What were they going to do? They couldn't let this thing take their friends like that!

Ara frowned in frustration as Draco got farther away with their friends; she wasn't going to let them get away with this!

Then, out of nowhere, Ara thought she heard small voice, _"Contraston…" _

A figure appeared for a split second and Ara felt something tap her forehead. Before she could question it, a grey mark appeared on her forehead and she felt energy course through her. With a cry she took a flying leap and sprang into the air, causing everyone's eyes to widen. She had never jumped this high before!

"RYAN, NOW!" She yelled. Ryan snapped out of his daze and opened the book, pouring in all the energy he had left,

"_ARIS!" _

Ara opened her mouth a huge blast of water hit Draco head on. The surprise attack caused the dragon to loosen his hold and drop Jyan and Josh. As the three fell, Ara grabbed the unconscious Josh and Spilo jumped onto the tree branches to catch Jyan. Ara landed and placed Josh on the ground before turning to see if Draco was coming back.

But to their relief, the dragon had vanished into the sky. "Ara, how'd you do that?" Spilo asked, "I never knew you could jump that high!" "Neither did I," Ara said, and as she spoke, the mark on her forehead disappeared and Ara's energy along with it. "I don't know how to explain it but it felt like…someone was controlling me or something…" she said in wonder; did have anything to do when that thing tapped her forehead?

Jyan shivered and turned away from the group just in time to see two small figures retreat into the trees. "But why did that dragon try to take Jyan and Josh?" Leon asked. "You didn't know that dragon did you?" Spilo asked.

Jyan shook his head, "Nope; he was just some character the author probably made off the top of her head," **(Jyan, I swear to God…)** Ryan looked at the sky where Draco and Melvin had flown off; something told him that they hadn't seen the last of them. Not by a long shot.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Whew! Shit is getting real! Don't worry about the cliffie, everything will be explained next chapter! And I'm a certain reader will recognize the mysterious Mamodo who appeared! ;)<strong>

**Ara: I wanna know who gave me that creepy mark...I don't have a stalker do I?**

**Me: *sweatdrops* I don't think Mamodo stalk people...**

**Jyan: YOU ALMOST MADE ME GET KIDNAPPED! WHAT THE HELL IS WRONG WITH YOU?!**

**Me: Call it payback for the fourth wall; seriously, you're starting to scare the guy.**

**4th Wall: Don't let him break me again!**

**Jyan: C'mon we ALL know that's not gonna happen!**

**Me: You know, if you keep doing this, you'll tempt me to burn your book in later chapters!**

**Jyan: WHAT?! YOU WOULDN'T!**

**Me: Watch me!**

**Josh: C'mon break it up, the readers didn't come here to watch you two fight!**

**Jyan: DON'T LET HER BURN MY BOOK JOSH!**

**Me: *Sigh* Spilo and Leon belong to silverdragon1928 and Josh and Jyan belong to thatguy331. Draco and Melvin belong to me obviously, and by the way, since the story arc is starting if you have any villain OCs you want to submit, now's the time! You know the drill.**

**Ara: Remember to review!**


	12. A New Ally and a New Enemy

**Hello everyone! Again sorry for the extra long wait! I've finally set the arc in motion with this chapter and I have plans for many OCs to be making appearances, some of which will be my own! But that doesn't mean I don't want you to stop giving me ideas; if you have anymore OCs please just send the word!**

**Anyway, quick recap: Ara, Spilo and Jyan all fought that dragon Mamodo Draco and his partner Melvin but the battle ended in a draw leaving Ara's team exhausted. Draco and Melvin then did something surprising; they snatched up Josh and Jyan and tried to take them away! Ara and the others chased after them, barely keeping up due from the fight when a spell was muttered and a strange mark appeared on Ara's forehead. This mark allowed her to jump super high and attack Draco up close causing him to release Josh and Jyan. After that, Draco and Melvin vanished leaving the team to wonder just what is going on. Enjoy!**

* * *

><p>Chapter 11<p>

The group sat in up in Ryan's bedroom. Jyan sat on the edge of his bed where an unconscious Josh was lying. Meanwhile, Ara and Spilo attempted to explain more of what had happened, "We were running after Draco, and the next thing I knew, Ara had this strange grey mark on her forehead; it was right after that that she did that super jump." Spilo said. "A mark?" Leon asked.

"But that wasn't all; I felt someone…or something tap my forehead… after I heard a spell…" Ara trailed off causing everyone's head to snap up, "A spell?!" Ryan asked in shock, "As in a Mamodo spell?!"

Jyan sprang up, "I actually sensed a Mamodo after we got away from Draco; I thought I saw them run away!" he said. Everyone turned to him in shock, "So there's a new Mamodo around…but why did they help us?" Leon wondered. "Yeah, if they're on our side, why didn't they reveal themselves?" Ryan added.

Finally, Josh began to stir, "Hey, he's waking up!" Ara exclaimed and everyone rushed over to the bed. "Hey Josh, wake up!" Jyan said urgently, shaking him slightly. Josh groaned and opened his eyes to everyone's worried faces, "Welcome back man," Ryan said with a smirk.

"Josh!" Jyan yelled and jumped onto his chest for a hug, very hard I might add, "Geez you had me worried, you passing out and all and that dragon trying to take us! I thought we were done for!" the Mamodo said with his arms around Josh's neck in a death hug. "J-Jyan…I c-can't…breathe…" Josh gasped, his face suddenly turning blue. Ara and Spilo quickly reached over and plucked Jyan off the teen allowing him to catch his breath as he sat up,

"You sure you're okay?" Leon asked. Josh nodded, "Yep; this isn't the first time I've passed out after using a strong spell so don't worry." He said when he recalled what Jyan had said to him a few moments ago, "Wait, what do you mean the dragon tried to take us?" he asked the small Mamodo. "Exactly what I said; that huge dragon swooped down and tried to take us away!" Jyan said as Spilo and Ara placed him on the bed.

Spilo crossed his arms, "It doesn't make any sense; why would a Mamodo try to kidnap another?" he wondered. Ara nodded, "Yeah, I know Mamodo go to extreme measures to try to win but this tactic seems off somehow," she agreed.

"Could they have been trying to take Jyan and Josh to a different place to burn their book?" Leon asked. Ryan shook his head, "If that was the case, why didn't they try to take us too? Draco was clearly only aiming for Jyan and Josh so it's not like they accidently missed us," he said.

Jyan suddenly flinched as a voice came from the window, "That's because there's another power at work here," Everyone turned towards the window, spell books in hand to see two children sitting on the windowsill; a boy and a girl. The boy was kneeling on one knee and looked to be about Jyan's age. He had short golden hair and a cloak surrounded his shoulders and blew slightly from the breeze. He wore a red shirt that adorned three golden buttons along with black pants and midnight blue boots; at his hip was a small sheath that covered a sword that was his size.

The girl was standing slightly behind him and looked no older than four years old. She had yellow hair that was slightly shorter than Ara's and looked very calm and collected. She wore a baby blue blouse with white buttons along with a pink skirt and Maryjane shoes, and in her arms was a dark grey spell book.

"Don't be afraid, I'm not your enemy," The Mamodo said calmly, "My name is Jibojiki Danmatsuma and this is partner Yasuko Matomeyaku; we've come all the way from Japan to warn you of a threat that will most likely cross your path." He said. Everyone slowly lowered their defense; for such a young kid he was very mature. "Alright, we're listening; what threat?" Josh asked skeptically as he sat on the edge of Ryan's bed, Jyan's spell book still tightly in his hand if need be.

Jibojiki and Yasuko both jumped to the floor from the window with ease, "We have reason to believe that a Mamodo currently residing in Japan is growing in power; that dragon Mamodo you fought today is just one of many other Mamodo that this threat has rallied together," Jibojiki said. Everyone's eyes widened, "How did you know about our fight?" Spilo asked.

"Simple; we've been observing you for the past few weeks," Jibojiki answered.

"What?!" Josh exclaimed angrily; it was then that Yasuko stepped forwards, "We had a feeling that you two would become a target of our enemy," she said pointing to both Josh and Jyan, "We had to watch you to make sure you wouldn't side with the enemy whether you liked it or not."

"What do you mean by that? Are you saying we'd join a bad guy?!" Jyan demanded. Yasuko didn't seem fazed at all by the outburst as a normal child probably would've burst into tears; instead she stood her ground with a blank expression, "Not all of the Mamodo our enemy has recruited are their because they want to," the little girl's eyes narrowed, "Many of them are being threatened,"

This caught everyone's attention as Yasuko continued, "We know that our enemy is threatening to destroy something precious to the Mamodo and their partners in order to receive their cooperation; as for what that precious thing is, we don't know." She said.

Ara stepped forward, "But that doesn't explain why Josh and Jyan are being targeted," she pointed out. Jibojiki stepped forward, "Your friends are being targeted because our enemy has seen their true potential," he answered.

"True potential?" Leon asked. Jibojiki nodded, "We don't know our enemy's motives, but we have a strong feeling that it involves powerful young Mamodo. I believe our enemy caught wind of your little battle in the amusement park and decided that you were worthy to be put to the test to see if you met their quota; and seeing that Draco and Melvin tried to take you away after your fight, I'd say that you both fit the bill perfectly." He explained, "Lots of Mamodo between the ages of 8 and 10 have been disappearing from our hometown and many are being targeted as we speak."

"How do you know that?" Josh asked.

Both Jibojiki and Yasuko's eyes darkened, "Because we have been targeted as well,"

Everyone let out a small gasp as Yasuko took over, "Many Mamodo tried to take us away by force but we were too strong for them; their threats didn't work because unlike the other Mamodo we knew that they were bluffing. It was then that we figured out why so many young Mamodo had been disappearing; the enemy is forming an army." She explained.

Everyone was silent as they digested the information until Ryan spoke up, "Why are you telling us all this?" he asked, "Out of all the Mamodo around here, why us?"

Yasuko looked at Jibojiki who nodded before answering, "Because we wish for you to be our allies in this fight," Everyone froze at the strange answer,

"This enemy is far stronger than any Mamodo you have ever faced and is hiding behind an army of Mamodo who are just as strong; if this were under normal circumstances Yasuko and I could probably do this ourselves, but the enemy made it personal when they took our friends and comrades away like this," Jibojiki clenched his fist and Yasuko looked at the ground sadly, "After watching all of you together we realized that you have good hearts and will easily do what's right and you all have great power inside you; that's why we're asking you to help us," Jibojiki then paused and went down on his knees, "No, we're begging you to help us; please help us defeat this enemy and save our friends," he said bowing his head. Yasuko bowed her head very low, "Please, will you help us?" she asked.

Everyone was stunned by the Mamodo and the girl's actions; were they really that desperate to plead another Mamodo for help like this? Ara could tell that this Mamodo was really worried about his friends and Yasuko was worried as well; even though they seemed very smart, they were still just children. Ara locked eyes with Spilo and Jyan; all of their eyes were filled with determination. The Mamodo all faced their partners who were all thinking the same thing; they all nodded and the three Mamodo stepped forwards.

Ara knelt down in front of Jibojiki and placed a hand on his shoulder causing his head to lift to meet her blue eyes, "Of course we'll help you," she said smiling. Jibojiki and Yasuko's eyes both widened, "R-really? You'll help?!" Yasuko asked happily. Spilo smiled and placed a hand on her head, "Hey, we can't let something like this go unchecked; if there's one thing we don't do, it's turn our backs on friends," he said.

Jyan smirked, "Plus, I think we deserve a little payback to that Melvin guy for trying to take us; I bet the author will make our re-match awesome!" he said.

Jibojiki took Ara's hand in both of his, "I can't thank you enough; now I know that the enemy won't stand a chance!" he said. Yasuko nodded her head, "Yes, thank you!" she exclaimed, bouncing happily. Jibojiki looked out the window and saw the sky begin to turn pink, "I'm afraid we have to leave now; we have to get to our hiding place in case any of the enemy Mamodo are still wandering around here," Jibojiki said and he and Yasuko jumped back onto the windowsill, "Yasuko and I are going to leave for Japan in exactly one month, you have until then to own your skills; when that day arrives meet us at the airport if you still wish to join us," he explained.

Everyone nodded, "You can count on us," Ryan said. "See you around," Leon said with a nod. "I hope the author writes you into more chapters soon," Jyan said causing everyone to sweat drop a little. Jibojiki nodded and he and Yasuko vanished into the twilight.

"Well, that was an exciting day," Ara said stretching a bit. "Those kids are smart; they made it so we would leave for Japan when summer started so we wouldn't miss any school," Josh said.

"That's a relief; but there's still the issue of not dragging our parents along," Ryan pointed out, but Jyan waved his hand, "Don't worry, it's easy; we'll help you think of some believable excuse," he said.

"We can think about that later; I think now we should focus on training," Spilo said. Leon nodded, "Good call; I don't want us or anyone else here to get pounded into the ground,"

Josh got up from Ryan's bed, "It's getting late; how about we talk about this more after school tomorrow?" he suggested. Ryan nodded, "Sounds good,"

The group walked to the door and bid farewell to Leon, Josh, Spilo and Jyan, "See you tomorrow," Ara called with a wave before she and Ryan closed the door and went back to his room, "Well, we really have a lot on our hands now don't we?" he said as he lay down on his bed with his hands behind his head. Ara went over and sat down on the edge of the bed, "Are you sure you're up for it?" she asked.

Ryan smirked, "To be honest, I'm a little scared, since we have no idea who or what this Mamodo's powers are, who knows what we'll be up against." He said. Ara smiled and clenched her fists, "Then we'll just have to work hard to get stronger; and if worse comes to worse, I'll always be there to take a hit for you," she said. "Thanks," Ryan said, _'But that's not the only thing I'm afraid of,'_ he thought, _'I'm afraid…that this battle might be our last…'_

* * *

><p><em>"Sordozaku!" <em>Jibojiki's sword glowed slightly and was surrounded with a black aura. His swift movements made his look almost like a shadow in the light of the crimson glow that came from his grey spell book. His attack easily slammed into the book owner of the Mamodo they were fighting, a young man, knocking him out cold.

Without a word, Jibojiki went over to the Mamodo who was still half conscious and held his still glowing sword to his throat, "We know why you're here; now, tell us who you're working for and we'll spare your book," he said calmly and dangerously.

The Mamodo smirked in the crimson glow of Jibijiki's book; guess there was no point in hiding it now…after all; soon any Mamodo who stood in their boss's way would be crushed into nothing.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Yay! Exposition! A new ally, and new enemy, a cliffhanger, and a brand new adventure awaits! What does this enemy have planned for the human world?!<strong>

**Jyan: Aw man, the suspense is killing me!**

**Me: What the hell are you doing here?!**

**Jyan: Just showing my support so you update the next chapter quicker!**

**Me: Since when do you support ANYTHING I do?**

**Jyan: Since this new enemy has something to do with me and Josh; that makes us the stars of the arc! I can't wait to see what happens!**

**Me: *facepalm* Even so, schools started so don't expect me to update super fast since these chapters are long as hell!**

**Jyan: And whose fault is that?**

**Ara: Yeah Ace, you always make the chapters really long, maybe longer than your other stories.**

**Me: Oh c'mon Ara, not you too!**

**Spilo: Yeah, and it doesn't help that you're super lazy and have tons of other unfinished stories to finish.**

**Me: I'm a busy girl leave me alone! TT-TT Anyway, Spilo and Leon belong to silverdragon1928, Josh and Jyan belong to thatguy3331, and our newest characters Jibojiki and Yasuko belong to Wowza48. I can't wait to use your characters more!**

**Ara: Don't forget to keep submitting OCs if you have any, and if you made up any villain Mamodo that you want to see just let us know!**

**Jyan: Review people! Maybe it will motivate Lazy-Ace over here!**

**Me: SHUT UP! WHY DID I EVEN AGREE TO PUT UP WITH ALL OF YOU?! TTATT**


	13. The Hard Knocks of Training

**Don't ask...just...just don't. School and college, that's all you need to know. Hopefully with this I'll get the motivation to set the arc in motion along with my other stories. Enjoy!**

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><p>Chapter 12<p>

_"Arisword!" _Ara's ice sword appeared as she ran towards her designated target. She let loose multiple slashes and multiple sword techniques until the large piece of wood that was her 'enemy' was nothing more than a pile of splinters. Ara panted heavily as her sword disappeared and faced Ryan who was also panting hard with sweat beading on his forehead. Ara walked up to him and gently took the book from his hands, "Come on…I think that's enough for today…" she said.

Ryan looked hesitant for a moment before nodding and the two trudged back towards home. It had been four days since they met Jibojiki and Yasuko and there were only a few weeks left in the school year, meaning that Ara, Spilo, and Jyan had spend as much time as possible strengthening their minds and bodies. This Mamodo clearly was a good manipulator if they could form an army of innocent children Mamodo so quickly so they had to be ready. Every day of the week the three Mamodo would wait for their partners until they were done with school and they would go to the forest. There they would practice attacking one another with spells as well as train their agility and stealth. This only happened on the weekdays; on the weekends the three would train on their own time.

It was sunset by the time arrived back home; they ate their dinner and collapsed in their rooms, out like lights. The next morning, Ara slept in while Ryan got up to go to school. Ara's whole body was sore and tired; she had never used spells so many times in the span of a few days. Ara spent the school day resting instead of accompanying Ryan; Ryan didn't question her about it and instead hid her spell book in his room so even if he _was_ attacked, Ara would be unharmed.

Ara spent the day conserving her energy, but she wasn't the only one; Spilo and Jyan did the same. When it was almost time for school to be out, Ara found her spell book and made her way to school. She met Spilo and Jyan along the way. "Ready for another day of training?" Spilo asked. "No," Jyan answered tiredly.

Ara nodded, "We've been doing this every day for over a week; by the time we have to go we probably won't even be able to walk." She said. Spilo squeezed his sore arm, "It's our partners I'm worried about; using spells takes a bigger toll on the humans. If we don't watch it they could use up more energy than they have," he said.

Ara looked at the ground in thought, "Now that you mention it, Ryan has been using a lot of spells one after another during our solo training; he says he's fine, but I can tell that he's pushing himself to the limit." She said. Jyan nodded, "Same with Josh; he knows how much energy my spells take but he's been really cranking them out; I'm afraid he might try to use _Gaou Chikelga_ twice in a row and go into a coma!"

Ara nodded worriedly, making a mental note to keep a closer eye on Ryan; the last thing she wanted was for him to use up all his energy.

* * *

><p>Ara sat perched on a tree branch and watched and listened for any sign of movement. Her eyes darted in the direction of every twig she heard snap and didn't so much as breathe as she watched her surroundings. She saw a glimpse of movement in the tree next to her and slowly made her way over to it.<p>

She reached for the branch that was blocking her view and sharply pulled it away to find nothing. She heard another rustle and turned just in time to see a flash of white below her. Ara jumped to the ground and made after it for a while until she jumped into the trees again to get a better view.

She followed the source among the branches, noticing another rustling noise following them. She continued to follow the one on the ground until she gave one flying leap, kicked the other rustling figure and landed on the grounded figure with a thump.

Spilo groaned in pain as Ara helped him up, "Not bad," Ara complemented as Jyan fell out of a tree, rubbing his shoulder where Ara had kicked him, "Did you have to kick me that hard?" Jyan whined. "Sorry," Ara said sheepishly before collapsing on the ground out of breath.

Spilo and Jyan did the same letting the cool grass touch their burning skin when Ryan, Josh and Leon approached them, "Please tell me we're done for the day," Jyan whined, "My creator didn't make me invincible you know." Josh nodded, "Yeah, I think we've done enough for today," he said and the three Mamodo sighed with relief, "Good; we already did four runs, I don't think I'd make five." Spilo commented.

Ara sat up ignoring her aching muscles begging for rest, "Hey guys, we've done a lot of training nonstop for over a week now," she said, "Do you think we could take tomorrow off so we can get our energy back?" she asked. Ryan looked hesitant, "I don't know…" he trailed off. "C'mon Ryan; this isn't just for us it's for you guys too!" Ara protested.

Spilo and Jyan nodded in agreement, "Your energy gets used up more than ours; we don't want you to push yourselves too hard," Spilo said. "Cause when the time comes, we won't be able to fight if we're all exhausted," Jyan added.

The three humans looked at each other and finally nodded, "Okay; we'll take tomorrow off," Leon complied. "But we'll start up again right after," Ryan added. The three Mamodo let out a content sigh as they fell back onto the grass.

* * *

><p>The next day Ara gladly welcomed her day of rest. She slept in until about ten and spent the rest of the day relaxing her body. By the end of the day she was still a bit sore, but she felt ten times better than yesterday. Night eventually fell and Ara was about to go to bed when she noticed that Ryan's lamp was on in his room. Ara guessed he was doing homework and went to bed.<p>

A few hours later, rustling in Ryan's room woke her up. She glanced at the clock and the luminous numbers read three forty five. She tiredly got up and poked her head into the hallway and saw that Ryan's lamp was still on. She quietly went to his room and peeked inside to see Ryan sound asleep at his desk.

She walked over to him and her eyes widened to see that he was sleeping on top of her book. Had Ryan been up this late looking at that thing? Ara sighed; she would confront him about it tomorrow. She carefully lifted him up bridal style and tucked him into bed before turning his lamp off and going back to her room.

The next morning Ara woke up and tip-toed into Ryan's room again to find him still dead to the world. It was Sunday so they usually started training after lunch, and it was eight now. Ara found Ryan's cell phone and went downstairs to call Leon. The phone rang and Ara was surprised to hear a different voice answer, "Hello?"

"Spilo? Why are _you _answering?" Ara asked. Spilo sighed, "Leon stayed up pretty late last night going over my spells and thinking of combos so he's still sleeping," he answered.

Ara sighed as well, "Same with Ryan; I think he was trying to decipher the rest of my spells." She said, "I was just calling to let you know that we may come to our training session a little late today," "Yeah, same here; Leon's wiped out."

Just then a beeping came from Ara's phone. She looked at it and found that it was Josh calling, "Hold on Spilo, Josh is calling; I'll put us in conversation mode," she said. "You can do that?" Spilo asked. "Ryan taught me," Ara answered simply and pushed some buttons to add the call to their conversation.

"Hello?"

"Hey Ara, it's Jyan," the voice answered. "Jyan? Is Josh down for the count too?" Spilo asked. "Oh! Hey Spilo; and yeah, Josh stayed up till midnight thinking of new spell combos for all our spells and going over spells of enemies we've fought in the past," Jyan answered, "He's trying to learn how to comprehend spells faster so we don't take as many hits."

Ara sighed and rubbed her temple, "Our partners are morons…smart and lovable morons at least," she said. "You can say that again; I think we should let them sleep today and save training for after school tomorrow," Spilo said. "Sweet! Another day off!" Jyan cheered. Ara smiled, "Well, not quite; we still need to convince the boys that they need to rest up today," she said, "And I have a feeling they won't go down easily."

"No worries about Josh; if he tries anything I'll just make him pass out with some rotten fish I've been saving for the occasion," Jyan said mischievously. "I think Leon will get the idea; he usually never passes up a day of rest…college will do that to you." Spilo said. Ara laughed, "I'll be sure to warn Ryan of that; see you guys tomorrow!"

"See ya!"

"Bye!"

Ara hung up the phone and went to make breakfast. By the time she was done she headed back upstairs to check on Ryan who was still fast asleep. Ara was eating lunch by the time she heard movement from Ryan's room. She went to his room to see him sitting on his bed rubbing his eyes, "How long was I asleep?" he asked.

Ara walked over and sat next to him, "Well, you passed out at about three last night and have been dead to the world ever since," Ryan sighed and looked at the ground as Ara continued, "I called Spilo and Jyan; Leon and Josh were up late too so we decided to give you guys a day off and train again tomorrow." Ryan got up, "Alright then; I'll just finish what I started," he said going over to his desk.

Ara quickly got up and swiped her book off his desk as he reached for it, "No way mister," she said. "Ara, c'mon," Ryan said reaching for the book but Ara jerked it away, "_You_ are going to actually rest; both your mind _and_ your body." She countered. Ryan said nothing and made a grab for the book again, but Ara wasn't giving in that easily.

"Give me the book Ara!" Ryan growled as the Mamodo kept him away with a palm on his chest. "If you keep this 'training' up you're gonna kill yourself!" Ara shot back. "If that what it takes to keep me from failing you again I'll gladly keep going!" Ryan yelled.

Ara's eyes widened in anger and shoved Ryan to the ground. Ryan gasped for breath when his back hit the ground and Ara knelt over him, holding him down with her hand, "You listen to me Ryan; don't you ever, _ever_, think that you're failing me," she growled, her blue eyes glimmering with rage, "You have done more for me than you can imagine; you've taken me in, trusted me in battles, and you've been my friend. Does that sound like failure to you?"

Ryan said nothing and Ara continued, "I know you're afraid of this enemy Jibojiki told us about; I am too. But grinding until you fall over isn't going to help anything. I'm not saying that this training hasn't helped, I'm just saying that it shouldn't be this exhausting for both of us."

Ara picked Ryan up and placed him on his bed, "Now, rest as much as you need to; tomorrow we'll think of a strategy with the others," she said before walking towards the door with her book under her arm.

"Ara," Ryan called just as she was about to exit the room. Ara paused and looked at him, "Thanks; I needed that," he said with a smirk. Ara smiled softly, "That's what friends are for," she said before heading to her room.

Ryan sighed with content as he lay on his bed; he didn't know why, but having Ara knock him around like that made him feel reassured. He now knew that Ara wouldn't hate him even if he _did _let her down. Even if this first battle could be their last, at least they would part as friends.

* * *

><p><strong>You aren't REAL friends or partners unless you can easily slap your friend when they're being stupid, that's what I say!<strong>

**Don't you dare think that just because Ryan says this fight will be their last that there will only be ONE arc! Hellz no! I already have the second arc on the drawing board; I plan to have three full blown arcs before ending this baby no matter how long it takes~!**

**Review please! Motivation is needed! *holds out hat***


	14. Off to Japan!

**Alright! Let's get this arc in motion already!**

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><p>"Have fun on your trip!" Mom called as she dropped Ryan and Ara off at the airport.<p>

"See you in a few weeks!" Ryan called with a simple wave.

"Keep an eye on him Ara!" Mom called.

Ara giggled, "I will!"

Mom smiled as she watched her children go. She still had no idea where Ara had come from, but she was such a joy to have around the house that she didn't mind at all.

Ara fidgeted excitedly as she followed Ryan into the large airport, "This is so exciting!" she said happily.

Ryan smiled at her enthusiasm, "They don't have planes in the Mamodo World?" he asked.

"Nope! Some Mamodo can fly so there's no point." Ara answered.

The two walked until they met up with two familiar Mamodo and their partners. Ara greeted Spilo and Jyan while Ryan went up to Josh and Leon, "You ready for this?" Ryan asked.

Leon sighed, "Ready as we'll ever be." He said.

"Ready to kick some butt?" Jyan asked, pounding his fist into his palm.

"Hey, I'm ready to test our new skills on some real enemies." Spilo said.

Ara nodded when she spotted two blonde children coming towards them. "It's Jibojiki and Yasuko." She commented.

Jibojiki smiled as he came up to them, "You don't know how reassuring it is to see you all here; I assume you've all been training hard?"

Jyan nodded, "You bet; we're ready for anything this Mamodo throws at us!"

"I hope that's true. I don't want to see another comrade be taken away." He said sharing Jyan's smile.

"Any chance you're gonna tell us more about this enemy?" Ryan asked.

Yasuko nodded, "Yes, but not here; we'll wait until we are safely on the plane and away from prying eyes to explain."

* * *

><p>Everyone was soon gathered on the large plane and was in the air. Ara, Spilo, and Jyan made sure to get window seats as they watched the land grow smaller beneath them, "This is amazing! We're so high!" Ara exclaimed.<p>

"Yeah, but the food isn't great," Jyan commented through a mouthful of peanuts, "At least the author is realistic." **(I try.) **

Jibojiki came back to his seat after looking around for any enemies with his hand twitching. They had to smuggle his sword into their luggage to get past security and it didn't feel natural to not have it with him. "Alright; I think now's a good a time as any to tell about this enemy." He said. The three Mamodo tore themselves away from the window and listened closely.

"This Mamodo is not to be underestimated; she's young, but very powerful." Jibojiki started, "She's made quite a name for herself in certain parts of the Mamodo World, mostly among children. Her name is Sachiko."

Jyan visibly flinched as he felt his blood run cold, "S-S-Sachiko?" he stuttered, "Y-You mean she's _here?" _

Jibojiki nodded solemnly, "I was just as shocked as you to hear that she had been allowed to participate in this battle; if not checked, her powers are dangerous, even deadly." He said.

"How do you know about this Sachiko, Jyan?" Josh asked.

Jyan shook his head, "I heard stories about her along with my friends; I heard that she looks really weak and innocent, but she can easily wipe out any Mamodo that crosses her." He said.

"Unfortunately, no one knows exactly why this is. No one has ever seen her power or what spells she can do." Yasuko added.

Leon frowned, "So we're going into this battle blind." He said.

Jibojiki nodded, "But whatever this power is, it's what's keeping Sachiko's army from shrinking. I'm suspecting her spells must involve manipulation of some kind, but we don't know for sure."

"Jibojiki and I were thinking that maybe if we could stop Sachiko's manipulation, we could turn her army over to our side or defeat them easily." Yasuko said.

Finally, Ryan spoke up, "What about Sachiko's partner?" he asked, catching everyone's attention, "Wouldn't another way to stop Sachiko be to convince her book owner to stop?"

Jibojiki out on a thoughtful look, "It's a small chance but not impossible. Sachiko may be tricking her partner into doing what she says…"

"Or they could be just as bad," Yasuko pointed out, "I'm sure you know by now that book owners can be just as bad as their Mamodo."

Ara clenched her fist as she looked out the window again; she had no idea what to expect in this battle, but she wasn't going to let that stop her. Unfortunately, Ara failed to notice a familiar black dragon flying a little ways below the plane, before it flew off below the clouds.

* * *

><p>Draco flew to the ground just outside his boss's lair where Melvin was waiting. The dragon growled to the human who nodded and walked inside where two shadows were waiting in the darkness. "I've come with a new report from Draco," Melvin announced, "It seems that Jibojiki is returning to Japan as we speak, and he's bringing the Mamodo we fought in America with him."<p>

A pair of red eyes glared at Melvin as a blood red glow came from the book the second figure was holding.

Melvin nodded hastily, "Yes, we will get everything ready; it won't be long before the blue chi Mamodo is safely in your clutches; you won't be disappointed."

* * *

><p>Ara stretched as the plane landed safely. They had been sitting in the same position for hours and it wasn't fun. Jyan rubbed his eyes due to jet lag as he dragged his feet into the aisle to follow the others out of the plane. Jibojiki and Yasuko looked tired as well, but that didn't change their serious and emotionless facial expressions.<p>

"Welcome to Japan." Jibojiki said, biting back a yawn as they exited the plane.

The group gathered their things and walked out of the airport to the car that was waiting for them. Everyone managed to rub the sleep out of their systems for the time being and take a look at the amazing city they had landed in. Everything looked so lively and happy, with hundreds of different stores and shops lining the streets. Ryan had to admit, it reminded him a lot of New York.

About a half hour later, they arrived at what they guessed was Jibojiki and Yasuko's place. It was an ordinary Japanese house with two stories. Everyone piled out of the car with their things and entered the house, "My parents are out of town for a few weeks; we are alone for the time being." Yasuko said.

"They left a kid your age all alone?" Ryan asked.

"I'm not as helpless as you may think." She responded.

"Follow me; I'll take you to your rooms." Jibojiki said. He led the group to an empty spare room with a wooden floor and a window leading to a balcony, "The futons are in the closet; make yourselves comfortable." He said.

The group went in and set their stuff down, claiming which parts of the room would be theirs. The room was quite big so spacing wasn't an issue. Once everyone was settled, Jyan was already sound asleep on his futon. While everyone decided to rest up, Ara and Spilo went over to the balcony.

They leaned against the railing as the breeze ruffled their hair, "It's very peaceful here," Ara said.

Spilo nodded, "Not for long; we still have to deal with this Sachiko." He said.

"Yeah, I wonder…" Ara trailed off as something caught her eye.

"What?" Spilo asked and followed her gaze. Someone, it looked like a little boy, was limping towards the house. Ara and Spilo looked at each other before bolting out of the room, waking Jyan in the process.

They ran into Jibojiki and Yasuko on the way down, who noticed the shocked looks on their faces, "What is it?" Yasuko asked.

"We saw a little kid coming towards the house; he looked hurt!" Spilo explained. Jibojiki's eyes widened and the four rushed to the door and opened it.

The boy was still there, clutching his arm and heavily limping towards them. He had dirty blond hair that was matted to his forehead with sweat and blood and looked about Jyan and Jibojiki's age. He looked up at them tiredly, "J…jiki…" he whispered before collapsing.

Jibojiki's eyes widened, "Joey!" he yelled, bolting towards the boy followed closely by Yasuko.

Ara and Spilo followed them as Jibojiki held the boy, Joey, closely. His clothes were covered in blood and he was cut and bruised all over. Fresh blood dripped from his injuries; he wasn't attacked long ago. In fact, he looked like he had barely escaped with his life due to his pale skin and heavy breathing.

"Joey, stay with me!" Jibojiki urged, "What happened?" he looked around as if looking for someone, "Where's Jenny?"

Joey shakily reached a hand up and pulled something out of the back of his shirt; it was an orange spell book, "J-Jenny…S…Sachiko…attack…escaped…" he whispered, tears coming to his eyes.

Jibojiki's eyes filled with fire as he lifted Joey up, "Let's get inside; he needs treatment." He said before turning briskly and walking inside.

Ara, Spilo and Yasuko quickly followed. At that point, Ryan, Leon, Josh and Jyan had come down the stairs just to see Jibojiki with the bruised a bloody child in his arms.

"Yasuko, who is that?" Ara asked as Jibojiki lay the boy down on the couch in the living room.

"That's Joey, one of our friends," she said, "He was one of the Mamodo that Sachiko captured."

Joey clutched the orange book to his chest tightly, now fully passed out, "Jenny…" he whispered as a single tear leaked from his closed eyes.

The group stared at the unconscious Mamodo as Yasuko went to help Jibojiki in treating Joey; whatever they were up against…it definitely wasn't good.

* * *

><p><strong>MAJOR props if you can figure out where I got Sachiko from! She is our villain for this arc and I plan to do some twisted stuff with her AND her book owner as you can see from what happened to our new little friend Joey (who belongs to me!)<strong>

**You can tell this arc is going to get quite personal for Jibojiki and Yasuko and probably for the others as soon as the plot rears its ugly head!**

**Review!**


	15. The Whereabouts of the Enemy

**Woo-hoo! Inspiration has struck! Suck on THAT writer's block! I've been at the beach for the past week so I had no way of writing. I had internet to check my stuff, but no way to update so sorry!**

**Anyway, thanks to one of my new reviews and friends, talkingbirdguy, I've been itching to update ever since I got home! talkingbirdguy has also started his own OC Mamodo fan fic like mine. It's called 'Mastery of the Mamodo' and he needs OCs so be sure to check it out! **

**Now without further ado, on with the story!**

**Recap: Ara, Ryan and the gang arrived in Japan without any trouble and learned the identity of their new enemy. A powerful Mamodo named Sachiko, rumored throughout the Mamodo world to have deadly powers. Shortly after arriving and Jibojiki and Yasuko's house they find a young Mamodo named Joey collapsed at the front door. The boy was covered with injuries and appears to have barely escaped with his life from Sachiko and leaving someone named Jenny behind in the process. The gang are now about to find out just how dangerous this new enemy may be... **

* * *

><p>Jibojiki sat on a chair he had pulled up, watching over Joey who was now fully treated. He still refused to let go of his orange spell book, but no one seemed to mind.<p>

"Poor kid…" Ryan said, "He looks like he went through hell."

Jibojiki clenched his fists, "Judging by his injuries, whatever Sachiko is doing is equivalent to hell," he growled, "All my friends are in the clutches of that…that monster. I'm going to enjoy taking this enemy down, no doubt."

Ara looked at Yasuko, "So, this Jenny, I'm guessing she's Joey's partner?"

Yasuko nodded, "She's no older than you and Ryan and she's a very nice girl; she's like a sister to Joey."

The unconscious Mamodo let out a moan as he finally began to stir causing everyone to gather around the couch. "Joey, are you awake?" Jibojiki asked gently.

Small green eyes slowly opened to the circle of worried faces above him, "Jiki? Yasuko?" he asked softly.

"We're here Joe," Yasuko reassured softly.

Joey grimaced as he slowly sat up, eyeing the strangers around him warily, "Who…who are…?" he trailed off.

Jibojiki put a hand on his shoulder, "Don't worry Joey, they're friends; we brought them here to help us defeat Sachiko." He said, noticing Joey's shudder at the mention of the name.

"Nice to meet you Joey," Ara said gently, "My name's Ara Waterlilly and this is Ryan Reynolds, my partner."

"I'm Spilo Silverdragon, this is my partner Leon Simons."

"I'm Jyan; my partner is Josh Luther here."

Joey smiled at the group, "Are you really going to help us?" he asked.

Jyan nodded, "You bet; that Sachiko girl targeted Josh and me like she did with you!"

"Really?" Joey asked.

Yasuko nodded, "Sachiko has seen their true potential; she sent a dragon Mamodo to America to take them away some time ago. They barely escaped."

Jyan nodded, "So we plan to get even with that guy!"

"What happened to you Joey? How did you escape?" Jibojiki asked.

Joey tensed slightly as he stared sadly at his spell book. He hugged his book to his chest as he began his story.

* * *

><p><em>Flashback <em>

_Joey's eyes darted back and forth in the large dark room that they called their prison. The chain around his ankle that attached him to the wall felt cold and heavy causing him to lean against Jenny, a youthful tall girl with long brown hair and green eyes like her Mamodo. _

_Jenny hugged the young boy close as they heard the slightly clinking chains of all the other Mamodo and their partners that had been taken by force. Those who had willingly agreed to join Sachiko were given much better living conditions. _

_Everyone in this makeshift dungeon was dirty and full of hopelessness; the threats Sachiko made against them still weighed heavily enough on their shoulders to keep them in check. Joey wished he could just close his eyes and wake up from this horrible nightmare, but he would get no such luck. _

_Joey's eyes began to flutter closed to try another vain attempt to sleep, hoping the steady air of the vent they were next to would lull him, but a voice cut through the vent causing both him and Jenny to perk up. _

_They could make out the words 'Jibojiki' and 'returning' and those words alone gave them something they hadn't felt in a while; hope. _

* * *

><p>"Once we heard that you and Yasuko were returning, we had a feeling that we could escape and get to you." Joey said, "We managed to break out and stay out of sight…but Sachiko caught us. We fought as hard as we could but…they were just too strong. We were close to a window, so Jenny threw me out…and I ran as fast as I could."<p>

Everyone was silent, digesting Joey's story. Leon eventually said what was on everyone's mind, "Do you remember what Sachiko's spells were like, or what she looked like?"

Joey's eyes widened and he began breathing heavily. He dropped his book as his hands clutched his head trying to stop the barrage of horrible memories from coming back. Jibojiki put his hands on his shoulders to try to calm him but it was no use. "She…she's awful…" Joey breathed. "She didn't even have to use a spell." Everyone's eyes widened as Joey went on. "While we were fighting her minions…we saw her and…" he hesitated.

"What did she look like Joey?" Yasuko asked gently.

Tears of fright came to Joey's eyes as his breath quickened, "All Jenny and I could see…was a huge shadow…with red eyes glaring at us…and blood…so much blood…" He squeezed his eyes shut, "After just looking at her…Jenny and I were to afraid to even cast a spell!"

"Calm down Joey, you don't have to remember everything." Jibojiki said, trying to keep his own fear from showing. Everyone was silent, their eyes wide in shock and fear; this Mamodo was so powerful that just looking at it petrified you in pure fear? Just what kind of threat were they dealing with?

"Jyan, I thought you said Sachiko looked weak and innocent." Josh pointed out.

Jyan shrugged, "That was just a rumor Josh, no one's ever actually seen Sachiko, remember?"

Meanwhile, Yasuko and Jibojiki were trying to keep Joey from having a total breakdown, "It's alright Joey Sachiko can't get you here!" Jibojiki said firmly.

Joey shook his head, "It's not just that!" he cried, "Jenny…Jenny's still stuck there!"

Everyone felt more fear settle in at the reminder. Ara couldn't believe this; she actually felt afraid. She had felt fear before when fighting tough Mamodo, but this was the first time she felt afraid before a battle; and she didn't even know what this enemy looked like yet!

Josh seemed to notice the tense atmosphere and decided that Joey had been through enough, "You should rest up kid; I think you've had enough painful memories for one day." He said.

Everyone nodded, Joey especially grateful for the excuse to have some time alone. They left Joey on the couch to rest while everyone else went up to the guest room.

Ryan put a hand on his head, "I can't believe this…how could a Mamodo and partner be so powerful?"

"Not only is this Sachiko a threat to Mamodo, but to all humans as well." Leon added.

"A book owner without their book or Mamodo is useless…who knows what they could be doing to Jenny right now." Yasuko said softly, her normally emotionless eyes now shining with a tinge of anger.

"It's a good thing Jenny gave him the book, otherwise Joey would've been long gone by now." Jibojiki said.

"So, what now?" Spilo asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Jyan asked stepping up and clenching his fists, "We're gonna go over to wherever Sachiko is and beat her into the ground!"

"Do you have a death wish?" Josh demanded, "You saw what she and her army did to Joey!"

Jibojiki nodded, "Plus, you and Josh are on their target list; storming that place would be equivalent to handing yourselves over."

"But we can't just do nothing!" Ara spoke up, "There's got to be some way to stop Sachiko; if we work together and form a plan we may have a chance!"

Ryan gave a slight smile from her fighting spirit, "She's right, we've already come this far, we can't just quit," he said, "We owe it to Joey and all the Mamodo who've been captured."

"That's what I like to hear." Leon said smiling.

Spilo nodded, "If you guys are up for it, then I'm in."

"Are…are you certain about this?" Jibojiki asked, "You know as well as we do that this fight won't be easy."

Ryan looked at the sword-bearing Mamodo, "You called us here to help, so that's what we're gonna do," he said.

"We said we don't turn our backs on friends, as far as the author is concerned, you two are a part of that category." Jyan added with a grin causing everyone to sweat drop slightly.

"Technically, I said that..." Spilo muttered.

Jibojiki and Yasuko smiled fondly, "In that case, we better get ready," Jibojiki said, "We'll need a good rest if we want to be ready to fight."

"We're counting on you guys!" Yasuko added with a smile.

"I…I'm fighting too." Everyone turned to the door to see Joey.

"Joey, you went through a lot already, you don't have to." Ara said but Joey shook his head.

"That monster has my partner, my sister. I'm not gonna just sit around and let Jenny suffer." He said defiantly.

"Joe…" Yasuko breathed.

"Do you really want to go back there, after everything you saw?" Jibojiki asked.

Joey nodded, "I made up my mind; I'm coming with you whether you like it or not!"

Jibojiki smiled, "You always were stubborn," he muttered.

"Do you know where Sachiko is?" Josh asked the small Mamodo.

Joey nodded; how could he forget such a place, "Sachiko's hiding in the last place anyone would look," he turned to Jibojiki and Yasuko, "Do you guys remember that abandoned school?"

Jibojiki and Yasuko's eyes lit up in realization, "You mean…she's been under our noses the entire time?" Jibojiki asked.

"Yep, Sachiko is at Kisaragi High School."

"Kisaragi High School?" Ara asked.

"It's the local high school a few streets down from here, well, it used to be," Yasuko said, "It was closed down about a year ago due to multiple accidents; eventually hardly anyone became students there anymore so they had no choice."

"Wow, that's pretty intense for a high school." Josh commented.

"What kind of accidents happened there?" Ryan asked.

Yasuko shrugged, "Mostly murders and homicides." She answered causing everyone to go into shock.

"How can you say that so calmly?" Ara demanded.

"She's one tough kid." Spilo agreed.

"You said this school was only a few streets from here; Sachiko's really that close by?" Leon asked.

Joey nodded, "If I remember right, Sachiko kept most of the prisoners somewhere below the school, Jenny and I included." He said, failing to suppress a shudder.

Josh put a hand on his chin, "If we could get a good layout of the school, we may be able to figure out a plan to counter attack." He said.

"The school is pretty big from what we've seen of it; we've never really been inside." Jibojiki said.

"And it was so dark in there when Jenny and I escaped that I didn't get a good look either." Joey added.

"We're gonna be flying blind." Ara said with a frown.

"This may be harder than we thought; the author's really cracking the whip in this chapter." **(What do you expect? The arc must be epic.) **

"Over thinking this will get us nowhere; I say that we spend today resting and tomorrow we'll go visit the school." Jibojiki said.

"That sounds like a plan." Ara said with a nod.

Josh nodded, "We'll just have to be careful not to draw any attention; we all know how strong Sachiko's minions can be."

Jyan nodded, "Right; well, we better get rested cause tomorrow, we're off to school!"

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Alright, we'll finally get to some good plot from here!<br>**

**Jyan: It's about freaking time lady!**

**Ara: I'm actually kind of excited, especially since your drawing so many references from-**

**Me: SHHHHH! Don't spoil it, let the readers figure it out! Aheheh...what she said is true, I AM drawing references from one of my favorite fandoms. I'll give you a hint, it's a video game. Again, MAJOR props if you can figure it out! I'll be making more references in the next chapters so maybe that will help you guys out! Also, I don't know if you noticed but I made up a last name for Spilo mostly due to his creator's name silverdragon1928. I hope you don't mind! X3**

**Jyan: Sooooo...I'm guessing Josh and I AREN'T gonna get kidnapped?**

**Me: *smiles evilly* You'll see...**

**Jyan: HUH?! HOW LONG ARE YOU GONNA MAKE US WAIT?!**

**Me: Patience my annoying, borrowed OC, we still have many characters to introduce and develop and a plot to thicken. These things take time you know.**

**Jyan: Oh great, you better not leave us hanging on this like last ti-HEY! Who're you calling annoying!?**

**Me: *facepalms* You are so dense sometimes...oh yeah, again, make sure to check out talkingbirdguy's fic 'Mastery of the Mamodo'. He needs OCs so if you want to see your characters in another story that will most likely update faster than this one, go check it out!**

**Spilo: Does this mean we may get another OC?  
><strong>

**Me: Time will tell buddy. Review if you please!**


	16. An Unexpected Challenger

**Me: Alright! Another tidal wave of inspiration! I love it!**

**Jyan: Whoa! An update already?! Am I hallucinating?!**

**Me: I'm just going to ignore you and hope you go away...X(**

**Recap: Joey awoke and properly healed from his injuries and had quite a story to share with the group. They learn that Sachiko is so strong that her presence alone makes her opponents to afraid to move. They also learn that Sachiko's base of operations is located at a recently abandoned high school called Kisaragi high...**

* * *

><p>The next morning, the group headed to Kisaragi High School. The school was surrounded by a large wall, possibly to keep out intruders when the school was in business. The group reached the entrance that was blocked by a large rusting gate and peeked at the large establishment. The school was about three stories high, one floor higher than your average high school and made of white stone. From what they could make of it, the school had two wings with a bridge connecting it.<p>

"Holy crap, this place is _huge_!" Jyan whispered. "Are you sure this was just a high school?"

Yasuko nodded, "It was very popular school back in its day, they actually expanded the size of the school twice because of that." She explained, "Ironic, isn't it? The most popular school in Japan ends up being closed down because there weren't enough students to keep it functioning."

"Doesn't look like anyone's around." Ryan commented as they stared at the empty courtyard.

"Let's keep looking; we'll need a basic layout of this place if we want to actually charge in there." Josh said. Everyone nodded and they traveled along the wall. They walked along the perimeter with their senses on high alert should they be spotted until they finally reached the end of the wall which connected with the wall that surrounded the entire neighborhood, cutting it off from the wilderness.

"Looks like the back of the school just leads to the forest," Leon commented. The wall surrounding the neighborhood was only half the size of the wall surrounding Kisaragi.

Josh examined the wall and the options it presented. It was about the same height as him so they would have no trouble climbing over it and infiltrating the school from behind. Plus, the trees could give them good cover. However, the enemy could easily know that as well and have minions hiding out in the trees for a surprise attack.

"What do you think?" Ara asked, noticing how deep in thought Josh was.

Josh sighed, "I'll just say this, getting into this place may be harder than we thought." He said.

Ryan couldn't help but feel a bit anxious. Josh was amazing when it came to plans and battle strategies; the fact that this school was stumping him wasn't exactly reassuring.

"Is there any more to this school that we don't know about?" Spilo asked.

Joey shook his head, "I was only able to escape because I was small enough to squeeze through the bars of the gate; if there are any secret entrances to this place, I don't know them." He answered.

Jibojiki nodded, "Let's head back to the house for now; we can plan our strategy there." He said.

Everyone agreed and began heading back along the wall. The four Mamodo took the lead, making sure that no surprise attack was lying in wait for them. The four peeked around the corner and something caught their eye.

"What in the world…?" Jibijiki trailed off.

Everyone else looked around the corner as well and mirrored their reactions, "What the hell…a kid?" Ryan wondered.

A young man that looked about sixteen or seventeen, was standing just outside the gates of Kisaragi high school. He wore a white shirt with an unzipped black jacket and black pants. His hair was bleach blonde as he stood defiantly in front of the school.

"Jyan, is that…?" Josh began to ask, but Jyan shook his head.

"It's not a Mamodo, it's a human."

"But what's he doing here?" Ara asked.

"Probably a delinquent; I'm sure lots of people vandalized this school before Sachiko took it over." Jibojiki provided.

The teen had his teeth and fists clenched in pure anger as he stared at the gates blocking his path.

"Get out of here man, don't do anything stupid." Ryan whispered.

However, fate was not on their side. Everyone gasped as the boy scrambled up the gate. With a little effort, he managed to get to the top and jump down to the other side from the top.

"Stupid kid, what is he thinking?" Leon demanded.

Spilo made to run towards the gate, "Let's get a better look." He said, but he was stopped by Jibojiki.

"We're too exposed if we look through the gate," he said, "We'll have to keep ourselves concealed." He looked up at the top of the wall and everyone nodded.

"Quick, lift us up." Ara said to Ryan.

Ara and Spilo got on their partners shoulders to get a better look, but they weren't tall enough. Ara and Spilo stood on their partners shoulders and managed to grasp onto the edge of the wall. The two older Mamodo hoisted themselves up on one elbow before Josh and Leon tossed Jibojiki and Jyan up to them. Ara grabbed Jibojiki's hand and Spilo grabbed Jyan's and the two lifted the two so they could grab the edge of the wall as well. The four hung on the edge of the wall by their elbows and watched as the blonde boy made a beeline for the front door of the school.

"Is he crazy? Does he even know what's in there?" Ara whispered.

"I doubt it," Spilo responded, "If he knows about Sachiko, why doesn't he have a Mamodo with him?"

"Let's just hope Sachiko's minions don't see him as a threat." Jibojiki muttered.

Their words were proven wrong as the doors opened revealing four figures, two of which were very familiar.

"It's Draco and Melvin!" Jyan whispered angrily.

The pair behind them was revealed to be a young girl and boy. The boy, who Jyan pointed out was a Mamodo, looked about his age. He had short black hair and two lines on his face like Jyan's. He had purple eyes that looked dull and bored with a red beret perched on his head. He wore a white long sleeved shirt that looked kind of like a smock since it looked only a tad too big for him, with brown stripes near the tips along with black pants and brown shoes. In his hand he held a large paintbrush that was about twice his size.

The girl looked incredibly short, possibly about three feet tall, maybe a bit taller. She had short brown hair with a flower clip and green eyes. She wore a long sleeved black shirt, a red skirt that reached her knees, black stockings and brown shoes. In her arms she held a cool grey spell book.

The girl looked actually a bit scared while her Mamodo seemed completely fine, if not bored, with the task at hand.

Melvin groaned, "Not you again, how many times do we have to beat you so you'll stay down?"

The Mamodo on the wall's eyes widened; this boy had come here before?

The teen grit his teeth, "I'm not leaving until I get what I've come for!" he retorted bravely.

"Who are you trying to fool kid?" Melvin sneered, "I can see it in your eyes; you're barely able to stand."

The four Mamodo watched the scene unfold in shock as Melvin pulled out Draco's spell book. "But if you're really insistent on dying, then be my guest!"

"No!" Spilo whispered.

"He wouldn't!" Ara whispered.

But he would as Draco's spell book glowed bright yellow. "_Zaruga!" _

A large beam of electricity shot towards the boy who dived out of the way just in the nick of time. The boy barely had any time to recover when another spell was cast.

"_Zasen!" _

Ara's grip on the wall tightened as the orb of electricity shot towards the boy. The boy managed to scramble away to avoid being hit directly, but the orb hit the ground and the resulting shockwave blew the boy back immensely.

"What kind of jerk attacks a defenseless human?" Jyan growled.

Jibojiki's eyes narrowed in anger, "I knew Sachiko and her minions were evil, but this is downright despicable!" he spat.

"Wait, they're attacking that kid?" Ryan asked in disbelief, not able to see the ongoing fray.

Ara nodded, "I don't think he'll be able to last very long against those two." She said.

They watched as the boy got to his feet and began running towards his opponents when he said something that made everyone's jaw drop.

"_Where's Sachiko?!_" he yelled. He managed to get to Melvin and attempted to punch him, but the older man simply caught his fist in his palm.

"Sorry, but I don't you believe you have an appointment." He responded snidely, before giving the boy a sharp kick to the gut.

Ara tensed and Jibojiki grabbed her shoulder, sensing her movement. "Don't, you'll be a sitting duck if you go barging in there." He said sharply.

Ara looked at him, "But he just a human; he won't make it if we leave him!" she protested, but the young swordsman shook his head. Ara managed to look back towards the fight that was consisting of multiple electric attacks that the boy tried so hard to avoid; she knew Jibojiki was right. Just charging into that fight would be reckless; not only would it be dangerous for her, but it would completely give them away!

The teen panted heavily and grasped his abdomen as he glared at Melvin and his dragon.

Melvin chuckled as the boy shakily tried to stand, "My you're quite the fighter aren't you?"

The boy wiped away the blood that had begun to drip from his lip, "I'm not leaving…until I find Sachiko…" he rasped out. His eyes were murderous as he stared down his attackers unwavering, "She's going to pay for what she did!"

"You idiot, stay down." Jibojiki whispered. He kept his firm grip on Ara's shaking shoulder as all four Mamodo tried their hardest to keep from exploding in anger.

Joey and the four humans on the ground were trying to keep their emotions in check as well. The explosions and the teen's pained cried carried well into their ears. How could they just be expected to sit back and watch this boy get killed?

"Well kid, it's been fun, but I think it's time we end this." Melvin said as his book began to glow brightly, _"Zaruku!" _

Ara and the others fought to keep from crying out as Draco covered himself in electricity. With one fell swoop, the dragon hit the teen dead on resulting in a heart wrenching scream. The boy lay on the ground, twitching as electricity clung to his body, and tried to get on all fours.

Melvin didn't seem impressed and let out a fake yawn, "I'm bored now," he moaned. He then turned to the girl and her Mamodo, "Finish him off will you Alicia; he's far too fragile for me." He said.

The girl, Alicia, seemed to tense up greatly as the request was made of her. She gave a small silent nod as she and her Mamodo stepped forwards. The girl muttered something as her book began to glow, "_Bo Anisen," _she said softly, as if it pained her to say those words.

Her Mamodo's paintbrush began to glow as the hairs began to extend. He lashed it towards the boy like a whip and wrapped the boy tightly in its grasp. The Mamodo kept an emotionless expression as he swung the entangled boy around before slamming him onto the hard ground. The boy's eyes widened as his breath was knocked out of him, leaving him coughing and wheezing horribly.

"Alright," Jibojiki growled, "This has gone far enough."

"Are we gonna fight?" Jyan asked, perking up at a chance for revenge.

Jibojiki shook his head, "No, we're going to swoop in and get him out of there without being seen." He said.

"But none of us are fast enough to pull that off!" Spilo protested.

Jibojiki nodded, "That's true, but I can make it so that one of you can." He turned to Ara, "Do you remember that spell I cast on you before we met?" he asked.

Ara's mind flashed back to when they were chasing Draco and Melvin, who had just taken off with Jyan and Josh, "You mean that mark you put on my forehead?" she asked.

Jibojiki nodded, "It's a strengthening spell; when it's cast on another Mamodo, I can control their energy to either deplete or rise." Jibojiki glanced at Yasuko, "If we cast it on you again, I can easily increase your speed tenfold, allowing you to get in there, get the boy, and get out without being spotted."

Jyan pouted slightly, "Why does Ara get to do it? I'm smaller so I wouldn't be seen as easily!" he pointed out.

Jibojiki looked away and blushed slightly, "It…it only works on girls." He muttered.

Everyone let out a quiet exclamation of shock except for Joey and Yasuko.

"Oh yeah, _that _doesn't sound shady at all." Ryan commented sarcastically.

"I don't make the spells you know!" Jibojiki snapped in defense before calming down. "We don't have much time; will you do it?" he asked, looking at Ara seriously.

Ara nodded without hesitation, "Whatever it takes to get that boy out of there." She said.

"Alright."

The four Mamodo dropped to the ground and Yasuko opened her iron grey spell book, allowing it to glow crimson, "_Contraston." _She said and Jibojiki's hand began to glow. He jumped up and lightly tapped Ara's forehead, causing the familiar grey mark to appear there. Jibojiki raised his hand and Ara felt a major increase in her energy.

"Alright, here I go." She said. She took a deep breath and jumped over the wall easily. The moment she hit the ground she took off running towards the fight. Even though it happened in seconds to everyone around her, in her eyes it was like slow motion.

The hairs of the paintbrush had uncoiled themselves from the boy as Alicia uttered the spell again, her bangs hiding her eyes, "_Bo Anisen."_

This time, the hairs of the brush only grew slightly and formed the shape of a large hammer. The hairs shimmered in the light, showing that it was indeed solid and ready for a finishing blow.

Ara ran towards the barely conscious teen and grabbed him just as the Mamodo was bringing the paintbrush down towards him. Ara barely managed to get a glimpse of Alicia and her Mamodo's face before she turned around with the boy in her arms and ran back towards the wall and jumped over.

All Alicia and her Mamodo saw was a blur or blue and the boy was gone, causing the paintbrush to hit only the solid earth.

Melvin saw this as well and was quite frazzled, "Wh-what the hell was that?" he demanded.

Alicia's Mamodo picked up his paintbrush as his book stopped glowing. A brief emotion seemed to cross Alicia's face; something that looked like…relief.

On the other side of the wall, Ara gently placed the boy down onto the ground as the mark disappeared from her forehead. Everyone gathered around him and he slowly opened his eyes.

"You okay?" Ryan asked.

"W…what…?" the boy asked weakly and he tried to move.

"Don't move, you're badly injured," Jibojiki said placing a hand on his shoulder.

Jyan nodded, "We barely managed to get you out of there, I wouldn't move if I were you."

The teen's eyes fell on Jyan and his eyes widened. He looked at the people around him before his gaze fell on Ryan, Josh, Leon, Joey, and Yasuko and their spell books. He slapped Jibojiki's hand away and scooted away from them as best he could. "Not more of them…" he muttered, "How of you monsters are out there?"

Everyone flinched by the sudden outburst. "Hey, you need to calm down," Ara said gently, reaching for him but the boy flinched away.

"Don't touch me!" he snapped, his eyes wide with fear and anger. The teen breathed heavily as he slowly tried to get away from them.

"Hey man, that's no way to talk to the people who saved your life!" Jyan said irritably.

"Shut up!" the teen yelled, "I'm not falling for that again…I won't believe any of your damn lies!"

Jibojiki shushed him, "Try to keep it down, they might hear you!" he hissed.

The boy tried to get up before letting out a final breath and falling back to the ground.

Ara managed to catch his head just in time before it made contact with the concrete and checked him, "He's passed out, guess the adrenaline finally wore off." She said.

Leon knelt next to them, "He needs a hospital; get him onto my back will you Ara?" he said.

Ara nodded and managed to get the limp boy onto Leon's back.

"The nearest hospital is this way," Yasuko said, pointing a certain direction.

As the group followed the small girl, Ryan looked at the unconscious bloody boy. 'What was that outburst about?' he thought. The boys words echoed in his head.

_ "How many of you monsters are out there?" _

_"I'm not falling for that again…I won't believe any of your damn lies!" _

This guy clearly knew about Mamodo and Sachiko. What could have happened to make him hate Mamodo? It wasn't just a fear factor; there was genuine anger in his eyes as well. Ryan had a sinking feeling that Sachiko had done more than just kidnap and force Mamodo and humans to fight against their will.

The group arrived at the hospital and the sight of the unconscious boy on Leon's back was enough to get the nurses to put the boy on a stretcher and wheel him away. Ryan watched the boy disappear into the long hallways of the hospital; just how deep did this thing go?

He glanced at the others who were watching the boy get wheeled away as well. They had a feeling that questions for this boy were in order once he was back on his feet.

* * *

><p><strong>Me: The plot thickens...who is this strange boy and what does he know about Sachiko, and how since he seems to not have a Mamodo? Shit is really starting to get real!<strong>

**Jyan: I still can't believe you updated this fast! That NEVER happens in this story!**

**Me: Just let it go, is it that hard a thing to accept? ...Don't answer that... Anyway, we finally got someone who recognized the reference I've been drawing from! Major props to SyroTheWritten for figuring it out! If you really can't figure it out then just look at the review he/she left or just be blissfully unaware! It's up to you!**

**Also we finally introduced a new OC from Jyan's creator thatguy3333. Don't worry, they aren't evil. If you've been paying attention to Sachiko's plan, it should be obvious why.**

**Jibojiki: Also, my spell really only does work on girls, in case you were wondering. My creator says so.**

**Me: Don't worry about it Jiki, it makes you unique!**

****Ara: I can't wait to learn more about that blonde boy! I'm Syro will figured it out!****

**Me: We'll see! Review if you please and let's keep this arc moving!**


	17. You Don't Have to Trust Us

**Me: Okay. Sorry about that. Inspiration's a bitch for this story (and Digitalia) X( **

**Jyan: I still can't believe you're updating this story...**

**Ara: Yeah, comared to how long updates were before this is a huge improvement!**

**Me: Why do I always get tormented by my own OCs...? **

**Anyway, quick recap: Ara and Co. arrived at Kisaragi High School, the supposed lair of Sachiko. While snooping to get a layout of the school the group sees something shocking. A blonde teenage boy storms the school alone and proceeds to get completely pummeled by Draco, Melvin, and another mysterious Mamodo duo. They manage to get the boy out of there and he shows a display of anger towards Mamodo, particularly Sachiko. As they took him to a hospital many questions rose. Who is this boy? How does he know Sachiko? What did Sachiko do to him that was so terrible that he hates Mamodo? **

* * *

><p>The group sat in the hospital waiting room for word on the boy's condition. The five Mamodo children sat on the floor, playing with some of the toys left to entertain kids while the four humans sat on chairs, discussing what to do next.<p>

"I agree," Josh was saying, "I'd like to know what this boy knows about Sachiko; we hardly know anything about her as is."

"Sachiko must have done something pretty bad to him to make him hate Mamodo so much." Leon said.

"It may not just be Sachiko," Yasuko pointed out, "This boy has been attacked by her minions many times according to Melvin; some of his anger could stem from traumatic experience."

"How old are you again?" Josh asked astounded how such a small child knew such big words.

Ryan looked up, "Looks like well be getting answers soon." Everyone followed his gaze to see a doctor coming towards them.

"How is he?" Josh asked.

The doctor gave them a reassuring smile much to their relief, "He'll be fine after a good rest. The damage to his ribs was severe, but the internal damage was minimal, they will heal in time." He said.

"That's good to know." Spilo breathed.

"I'm afraid you can't see him now, but visiting hours start at noon tomorrow; he should be alright by then." The doctor said.

"Thank you." Jibojiki said with a slight bow and the doctor exited the room.

* * *

><p>As the group walked back to Yasuko's house, Ara spoke up, "Do you think it's a good idea to visit that boy?" she asked, "I'm afraid he might freak out again if he sees us."<p>

Yasuko nodded, "Until we can convince him that we aren't enemies, it may be difficult for him to see reason." She agreed.

Ryan grimaced a little when his eyes fell on Joey, who was staring at the ground in thought, holding his spell book. "What if we send Joey in?" he suggested, causing everyone to stop.

"Why me?" Joey asked.

"Both you and that boy have something in common," Ryan said, "Both of you have had something taken from you by Sachiko."

Everyone's eyes lit up as they understood the suggestion. "That's true; that guy may calm down if he knows he has an ally," Josh said.

"And then we may be able to get through to him without causing panic." Jibojiki concluded.

"But…I'm a Mamodo, won't that just make him panic anyway?" Joey asked. Jyan shook his head and put his arm around Joey, "Relax man, you look like an ordinary kid unlike me and Jibojiki _and_ you have your spell book; I bet you anything that guy thinks you're the human in the partnership!" he pointed out.

"Wow Jyan, that was actually pretty insightful," Josh said with an impressed expression.

Jyan looked prideful, "I guess the author finally realized how awesome I am!" **(Don't count on it…)**

Joey looked a bit unsure, "Are you sure it'll work?" he asked.

Ara smiled and placed her hand on his head, "Don't worry, if anything happens, we'll be right outside." She reassured.

Joey thought the proposition over for a few seconds before nodding, "Alright, I'll do it."

* * *

><p>The next day, around noon, the group headed back to the hospital where the same doctor from yesterday greeted them. He led them to the room that held the boy before leaving them and everyone looked at Joey.<p>

The young Mamodo nodded and knocked on the door before opening it. He peeked inside to see the boy staring blankly at the ceiling, not noticing someone other than a doctor had entered the room. Joey placed his book in the back of his shirt and entered the room fully, still not drawing the boy's attention.

Joey noticed thick leather straps around the boy's wrists, holding him to the bed; he guessed he really made a fuss while they patched him up. Joey finally couldn't stand the silence anymore and took a step towards the bed, "Hey," he called, finally resulting in the boy looking at him, "Remember me?"

The boy's eyes narrowed dangerously and the muscles around his arms became tense as he yanked his restraints slightly, causing his heart rate shown on the monitor to speed up.

Joey held his hands up in front of him and he slowly made his way towards him, "I'm not gonna hurt you, I just wanna talk," he tried.

"What do you want?" the boy growled.

Joey took a deep breath, "You know about Mamodo, right?" he asked. Everyone outside the room leaned in slightly to hear the inevitable answer.

The boy's jaw clenched at the very word, "I know that they're monsters who think they can use our planet to have their little battle!" he spat, "They don't give a damn about humans, we're just tools to them; tools they can manipulate and control!" The boy's eyes became hidden by his bangs as everyone listening took in his harsh words.

Joey tried to hide the hurt in his eyes; he had never heard anyone talk about Mamodo like that before. Joey swallowed the lump forming in his throat, "So you do know about Sachiko then?" he asked.

The boy clenched his fist so tightly Joey was afraid he would start to bleed, "That bitch…" The boy muttered, "That monster…she took something of mine."

Everyone's eyes widened.

"I'm not gonna stop until I get her back for what she did to us." The boy continued in the same menacing tone, "I'm gonna make her _pay_!"

Joey was silent as he removed his book from his shirt causing the boy to tense up again, no doubt thinking Joey was going to read a spell and attack him. "Then you're just like me." He said softly.

The boy seemed surprised at the response and Joey locked eyes with him, "My name is Joey, I'm a Mamodo," he said, "Sachiko kidnapped my partner and me to force us to join her. I was able to escape…but my partner didn't," Joey's grip on his book tightened, "Trust me, I want to get back at Sachiko just as much as you do." Joey looked back at the door and then back to the boy, "But I know I won't be able to stop her alone."

Right on cue, Ara, Ryan, and the others entered the room. Much to their relief, the boy didn't panic as he was still taking in Joey's words.

Josh stepped forwards, "Sachiko's targeted me and my Mamodo," he said gesturing to Jyan, "We won't be safe until we defeat her."

The boy stared hard at them, "How do I know you aren't lying?" he asked, though not as coldly as before.

Yasuko stepped forwards, her eyes narrowing dangerously, "If we were, we would have taken you out; now." Jibojiki partially unsheathed his sword showing its sharp blade before sheathing it again.

"You don't have to trust us," Ara said, "Just tell us what you know about Sachiko so we can find a way to stop her."

The boy, after hearing this, seemed to have relaxed greatly. He looked at his sheets as he sat up as best as his restraints would allow, "You'll really help me stop her?" he asked softly.

"Of course." Jibojiki answered while everyone around him voiced their agreement.

"By the way, we never got your name," Spilo remembered, "My name's Spilo Silverdragon."

"My name's Ara Waterlily."

"Jibojiki Danmatsuma, a pleasure."

A small smile quickly seemed to grace his face as everyone else introduced themselves. Despite them having Mamodo, they seemed to be a trustworthy bunch.

"So what's your name?" Ryan asked.

"My name's Yoshiki. Yoshiki Kishinuma." He answered.

Leon crossed his arms, "Alright Yoshiki, what exactly did Sachiko do to make you charge into a Mamodo guarded school?" he asked.

Yoshiki lay back down on the bed and placed his arm over his eyes, "I'm sure you heard me from outside," he said, "Sachiko took something I really care about."

"What did she take?" Ara asked slowly, afraid to know the answer.

Yoshiki kept the arm across his eyes as if he was trying to hide his emotion, "She took my best friend away," He whispered, "My only friend." Despite the softness of his voice, it was racked with emotion he was mostly likely holding in before. "He's trapped in that place, with that monster looming over him."

_'Sachiko must've taken him and his Mamodo by force,'_ Ryan thought. At first he thought that this 'friend' was Yoshiki's Mamodo, but so far, Sachiko had been capturing both Mamodo and their partners. A Mamodo was pretty much useless without their partner and vice versa. Ryan looked at Josh and could tell he was thinking the same thing. The door then opened, snapping them out of their thoughts.

"Oh, I'm sorry," a small voice squeaked, "I'm just here to visit my friend."

Everyone turned to the door to see a little girl standing there. She looked seven or eight with big shy brown eyes, and brown hair that barely touched her shoulders. Her bangs were held back by a pink headband and she wore a small dark blue dress with little white shoes.

Yoshiki seemed to recognize the voice, "Yuka?" he asked, trying his hardest to sit up without the restraints digging into his skin.

Jibojiki stepped up and discreetly unsheathed his sword which easily sliced through the leather straps. Luckily, with everyone in the small room, his action was hidden from the girl. "You won't need those anymore." Jibojiki said with a smirk, receiving a somewhat grateful look from Yoshiki.

The little girl, apparently named Yuka, ran around the crowd of people already inside and straight to Yoshiki. "Yoshiki! What happened?" she exclaimed as she looked over his injuries, "You went back didn't you? To the scary school!" she accused.

Yoshiki frowned, "You expect me to just sit back and let Sachiko get away with what she did?" he asked sharply.

Yuka flinched and her expression became sad, "I know, but…when I heard you were in the hospital again…"

Everyone's eyes widened at that sentence; again?

"I was worried that something really bad had happened!" Yuka sounded like she was on the verge of tears but stopped when Yoshiki placed a hand on her head.

"You don't have to worry about that anymore Yuka," he said reassuringly, "I'm fine now, and we're not alone anymore."

Yuka looked confused and glanced at the group behind her, where she finally saw the spell books. She let out a small gasp and looked at Yoshiki. She seemed to calm down a bit when he didn't seem alarmed by their presence.

"These guys have it out for Sachiko just like we do," Yoshiki explained, "They said they would help take her down."

Yuka's face immediately brightened as she faced them, "You're really going to stop Sachiko?" she asked hopefully.

Jyan shrugged, "That's the plot we have to follow so that's what we're gonna do!" Everyone gave him a strange look but Yuka seemed too excited to care.

"Thank you so much!" she exclaimed, "My name's Yuka Mochida, it's nice to meet you!" Everyone couldn't help but smile at how adorable and innocent this kid was.

"So Yuka," Ryan said, "Do you also know the person Yoshiki wants to save from Sachiko?"

Yuka's smile dissolved into a frown, causing Ryan to feel a little guilty for dampening her happy spirit, but they had to know how much these guys knew about the enemy.

Yuka nodded and Yoshiki placed a hand on her shoulder, "I told you that Sachiko took my friend; he also happens to be Yuka's older brother." He explained.

Everyone's faces became shocked at hearing this. Taking someone's friend was one thing, but someone's sibling? How many families had this Mamodo torn apart?

Yuka fiddled with the hem of her dress, "My big brother…his name is Satoshi," she said. "Sachiko tricked us and took him away to the scary school."

* * *

><p><strong>Me: SO MANY REFERENCES! It's so fun to write!<strong>

**Ara: I know! I hope more people discover the reference soon!**

**Me: SyrotheWritten already gave it away in the reviews so people should know the name. Now they just need to watch a play through to get why we like using it so much! Oh and BTW, (for those who know the game) I made Yuka about seven or eight in this story, because there is no damn way she could be fourteen! I think people would hate her less if she actually acted her age! ****Also, if you know the game, expect a lot of angst from Yoshiki in the future, cause let's be honest, that's the reason we love him so much!**

**Spilo: You know, this Sachiko villain, you're really making her sound like a spawn of Satan.**

**Me: That's the point! We need to have a really good reason to kick her ass when the climax comes around! And what better way than to thrown in emotional trauma?**

**Jyan: Man, I just hope we get some action soon...all this exposition is getting boring!**

**Me: Do you _want_ your book to be a pile of ash?**

**Jyan: ...I'll be good...**

**Me: Awesome! Anyway, I hope you're enjoying where this is going so far! Remember to review, kay?**


	18. Infiltrate Kisiragi High School!

**Jyan: ...**

**Me: Don't...say...anything.**

**Jyan: ...Two months-**

**Me: SHUT UP! *deep breath* Let's just get on with the story without ANY distractions, okay?!**

* * *

><p>Ara and Ryan leaned against the railing as they looked out the window from Yasuko's house. The rest of their friends were lying on their futons in silence, except for Yasuko, who was downstairs. It had been a day since they had last visited Yoshiki in the hospital.<p>

The conversation they had with him and Yuka still echoed in their heads loud and clear.

"So, you're saying both of you, and this Satoshi, knew Sachiko?" Yasuko had asked.

Yuka nodded grimly, "At first she seemed really nice…we thought she was our friend…"

Yoshiki sighed, "But once we found out who-no, _what_ she really was…everything changed." He said. "Next thing I know, Yuka's running to me in tears saying that Sachiko and Satoshi were gone."

"But why would she take him?" Jyan asked, "Seems kinda pointless if he doesn't have a Mamodo."

Yoshiki and Yuka looked at each other before shaking their heads, "We don't know." Yoshiki answered.

Yuka nodded, "They just…disappeared."

Everyone had gone back to the house after that, the gears turning in their heads. One question that lingered was why Sachiko had taken Satoshi in the first place. Could she need him for something? Did he know or have something important? Or did she just want him to hold over Yoshiki and Yuka to keep them in line?

"Argh!" Jyan's annoyed cry brought everyone out of their thoughts, "I can't take all this suspense! I can't tell if the author's just stalling or what!" he whined.

Josh rolled his eyes while everyone else tried to ignore his outburst. "Patience, Jyan," Jibojiki said. "We'll be able to plan our attack strategy very soon."

Josh looked around the room until his eyes fell on Leon's bag. "Hey, Leon," he said, catching the older boy's attention, "Did you happen to bring a laptop with you?"

Leon nodded, "Yeah, how'd you guess?"

Josh shrugged, "I just figured since you were in college and all…"

Ryan gave him a look, "Is that supposed to be a stereotype, or what?"

Josh waved him away, "It doesn't matter, my point is, can I use it?" he asked.

Leon shrugged, "Sure, but why?" Josh didn't answer and instead pulled the laptop out of Leon's bag. He opened it and pulled up the internet.

"What are you doing?" Ryan asked, as he and Ara leaned over him.

"I'm looking up people that have gone missing in Japan," Josh answered, "We may as well get a hint of who we're looking for once we start the fight."

Leon nodded, "Smart thinking." he said, impressed. Spilo and Jyan joined Ara and Ryan in looking at the screen while Josh searched. After a few moments, Josh pulled up a site with multiple mug shots listed down the page along with names, ages, and the day they went missing.

"Whoa! Did Sachiko kidnap all these people?" Jyan asked in disbelief.

"I don't think so." Ara said doubtfully.

"Anyway," Josh began to scroll down the page, "Let's see if we can't find one Satoshi Mochida." Joey joined the group and scanned the pictures as Josh scrolled down. Multiple faces of all ages slowly traveled down and off the screen.

"Hey!" Ara suddenly exclaimed.

"What?" Ryan asked.

"Go back up!"

Josh complied until Ara pointed at the screen. "There!" Everyone looked at the picture she was pointing at. "That's the girl who was attacking Yoshiki with Melvin." Josh clicked on her picture and her information appeared.

_Name: Alicia Faranheart. _

_Age: Thirteen. _

_Time Missing: One month. _

_Status: Unknown. _

"She must have been forced to join Sachiko, since she was fighting with Melvin." Spilo observed.

"No doubt because of Sachiko's threats." Jibojiki added, joining the others around the computer.

"She seemed really upset at what she was doing; same with her Mamodo." Ara said, remembering their faces. Josh went back to the list of pictures and continued scrolling down.

Eventually, a brown haired girl was seen among the pictures. "Jenny…" Joey whispered. Josh caught his words and clicked on the picture of the girl.

_Name: Jennifer Horowitz. _

_Age: Fifteen. _

_Time Missing: One month. _

_Status: Unknown. _

Jibojiki put a comforting arm around Joey's shoulders as the Mamodo hugged his orange book to his chest once again. He squeezed his tear filled eyes shut hoping to keep them from emerging. Josh went back to the list and continued to look. The amount of time the people had gone missing gradually got higher as they scrolled down until Josh spotted who they were looking for.

"Aha!" He pulled up the picture for everyone to see. The boy had short brown hair and deep brown eyes. His picture depicted a very calm yet innocent demeanor, complete with a serene smile.

_Name: Satoshi Mochida. _

_Age: Seventeen. _

_Time Missing: Six months. _

_Status: Presumed dead. _

Everyone's eyes widened; this boy had been missing for six months?! It was no wonder the authorities thought him dead! Not only that, but Sachiko has most likely been planning all this time; who knew how many Mamodo she had got into her army by now!

"Well, this certainly escalated quickly…" Jyan muttered.

"No kidding…" Josh said, agreeing with his partner for once.

"It's been six months and they haven't found any sign of him?" Ryan asked.

Jyan shrugged, "My best guess is that the author made the police and stuff useless for plot benefit; that's what I would've done."

"I'm starting to wonder if we should take this info to heart." Leon said.

"What do you mean?" Spilo asked.

Leon looked at him, "If Satoshi has really been imprisoned by Sachiko for six months, how do we know if he's alive?" he asked. "What makes Yoshiki and Yuka so sure he'll be there when we go to fight?"

"You can ask them yourselves." Yasuko entered the room. "They're here."

Yoshiki and Yuka appeared in the doorway behind Yasuko. "Good to see you all healed up, Yoshiki." Ryan said.

"I'm gonna have to be if we're gonna take down Sachiko." He responded.

"Yoshiki, Yuka," Josh called, spinning the laptop around to face them, "Is this the Satoshi you're looking for?"

Yoshiki and Yuka glanced at the picture. "That's him." Yoshiki said sincerely, anger flashing in his eyes for a brief second.

"Has he really been missing for this long?" Ryan asked, "Six months?"

Yuka nodded sadly, "Mom and Dad have already suspected the worst…"

"You're certain he's still alive?" Leon asked.

"I _know_ he is, trust me." Yoshiki said with an unwavering voice. The sincerity in his voice made everyone decide not to question any further; they would just have to hope for the best when they entered that school. They had no idea what Sachiko was doing to her hostages, but no one dared ask Joey for the details. They didn't need to be more traumatized before the fight even started.

Ryan crossed his arms thoughtfully, thinking of how much weight this fight was carrying. Not only did they have a dangerous Mamodo on the loose, but the lives of innocent humans and Mamodo in the crossfire. If they messed this up, they would lose much more than the fight and their own Mamodo.

"I say that the hostages should be our first priority." Ryan said, "If we can at least get the kidnapped Mamodo and book owners out of there, maybe that would cut down Sachiko's army a bit."

"Therefore, decreasing the number of enemies Sachiko has at her disposal," Jibojiki concluded, "I like it."

Yasuko nodded, "It would be reassuring knowing that innocents are out of harm's way," she looked at Joey, "Judging by Joey's condition when he first escaped, I imagine many will need medical attention."

"Satoshi especially, considering he's been locked up for half a year." Spilo added, nodding towards Yoshiki and Yuka.

"Thank you!" Yuka said gratefully.

Jyan smirked at her, "Don't thank us yet; wait until we get him out of there." Yuka nodded and Yoshiki stepped up.

"You're really gonna infiltrate Kisaragi? Even with Sachiko running the place?" he asked.

"Well we can't just do nothing; Sachiko's after _our_ friends too, you know." Ara reminded him, glancing at Jyan and Joey.

"That school is huge though," Spilo pointed out, "How will we know where the hostages are?"

"We were in some kind of basement," Joey piped up, "I'm not sure how low we were, but there were no windows and only one flight of stairs."

"Kisaragi only has one basement that I know of," Yoshiki said, looking thoughtful.

"How do you know?" Josh asked.

"Satoshi and I went there before it closed down," he answered, catching everyone's attention, "It was a good school; we were all pretty disappointed that it had to close."

"Do you know how we can get in?" Leon asked.

Yoshiki scratched his head, "The back doors are the only other way, but it's guarded…I learned that the hard way." He said. "But there are a few open windows that aren't guarded."

Everyone looked a bit more hopeful at the information. "I could probably get into one of those windows," Ara said, glancing at Jibojiki.

"But you can't go in alone." Ryan pointed out, "And you can't carry all of us in there."

"We may have to split into groups," Yasuko said thoughtfully, "We could cover more ground that way." Everyone soon gathered around into a circle, ideas flying through the air.

* * *

><p>Ara and Jyan peeked over the giant wall that led to the forest surrounding the back of the school. "Ready?" Ara asked.<p>

"You bet!" Jyan responded.

She looked back towards the neighboring houses where all six of the humans as well as Jibojiki were lying in wait. Jibojiki raised his hand and Ara felt the mark on her forehead increase her energy. Ara nodded and Jyan jumped onto her back.

"Here we go." Ara easily jumped up onto the top of the wall and looked at the school. She spotted an open rickety window that seemed to lead to the third floor. It was going to be a long jump, but with Jibojiki's spell, it was no problem.

With one leap, Ara leapt and easily landed on the windowsill. She signaled to the group outside and Josh pulled out Jyan's spell book while Jyan faced the forest area.

_"Chikeru!" _

Josh said quietly but firmly. Jyan shot the blast of blue energy into the trees, causing a loud explosion. Ara quickly slipped inside the window and they listened. To their delight, they heard silenced orders and the crunching of leaves towards the explosion.

* * *

><p><em>"So there are Mamodo guarding the back entrance of the school?" Ryan asked. <em>

_Yoshiki nodded, "There were about three of them when I first tried going in that way." _

_Jibojiki nodded and tapped his chin, "If we want to get in that way, we'll need a diversion of some kind…" _

_Josh nodded, "Something that would draw them away for a few minutes."_

* * *

><p>Meanwhile, on the other side of the wall, Spilo and Joey listened until the footsteps had died down. They quickly climbed up the wall and ran as fast as they could to the back entrance of the school. They found it unguarded and quickly slipped into the dark halls.<p>

They hid in the darkness, making sure no Mamodo were patrolling the halls before venturing deeper inside until they were out of sight of the door.

* * *

><p>"<em>So Ara and Jyan will go through the window, while Spilo and Joey will go in the back door." Ryan clarified. <em>

_"But what about the rest of us?" Yoshiki asked. _

_"We'll stay outside and keep the spellbooks safe," Leon answered. _

_Ryan nodded, "We can also keep watch for anything that goes wrong." _

_"Jiki and I will stay with all of you," Yasuko said, "If any of Sachiko's minions find us, you'll need a Mamodo to fight."_

* * *

><p>Jibojiki and Yasuko stood straight, their eyes alert. They looked around for any signs of Mamodo while the humans hung back.<p>

"You think Spilo and Joey made it?" Leon asked, tightening his grip on his gold spell book.

"We'll just have to trust that they did." Ryan said. Right on cue, his cell phone vibrated with two texts.

Both of them read the same thing: '_We're in.'_

* * *

><p>"<em>We can use our cell phones." Ryan suggested holding his up, "That way we can stay updated of what's going on in there." He looked at Ara, "I don't know about you guys, but I don't want to send my Mamodo into a hellhole without knowing what's happening." <em>

_Josh and Leon pulled out their own phones, "Not a bad idea." Leon commented as they quickly exchanged information. _

_"Just make sure those things are quiet." Josh said. The three boys quickly turned their phones to vibrate. _

_"But…won't talking on a phone give you away?" Yuka asked. _

_"She has a point." Joey pointed out. _

_Jyan grinned, "That, my friends, is what texting is for."_

* * *

><p>Jyan put Josh's cell into his pocket as he and Ara checked their surroundings. The hallway was dark, even though it was day. The floors were made of wood that was steadily rotting and cobwebs hung from almost every corner. Large holes where the wood rotted through littered the floor as the musty air nearly suffocated them.<p>

"Any Mamodo nearby?" Ara asked Jyan.

The younger Mamodo shook his head, "All clear."

Ara nodded and the two crept down the hallway. Jyan stayed in front, keeping his senses on high alert for any Mamodo. They passed by lots of empty classrooms, full of rusty chalkboards and desks that were near collapse. You could have easily mistook it for a legitimately haunted school.

"Man, why'd Sachiko have to choose this place?" Jyan muttered.

"Well, it is the last place anyone would look." Ara pointed out. "Still, I can't believe it's only been abandoned for a year; it feels like it's been empty forever!"

They walked a few more feet until Jyan stopped suddenly, so much so that Ara nearly tripped over him. "Careful." Jyan said; both Mamodo looked down to see that the rest of the hallway was cut off by a decent sized hole. "Well, guess we better jump." Jyan said taking a few steps back, but Ara stopped him.

"Bad idea; someone could hear us."

Jyan sighed, "Then what do we do? The author can't make us wander forever."

Ara looked around until her eyes landed on a long plank of wood. She went over and picked it up; it seemed very sturdy and thick, easily able to support two kids. "This ought to do it." She said and she carefully slid the board across the gap until it reached the other end.

With their new path, the two Mamodo easily crossed the hole and continued on their way. After a while, they had searched the entire third floor and found nothing of use or consequence. Jyan pulled out the cell phone and texted their findings: '_Nothing on third floor.'_

"Where should we look next?" Ara asked, "Should we keep going up?"

Jyan made a face, "I dunno, isn't the top floor usually where the boss is?"

"Well, we won't know unless we look," Ara said, "And if we see someone, we get out of there; at least we know this floor is safe for now."

Jyan nodded, "Alright, sounds good." He texted their plan: '_Heading up to 4__th__ floor.'_

* * *

><p>Ryan read Ara and Jyan's most recent text aloud before shoving it back into his pocket. "I hope they can make it through…"<p>

"Anything from Spilo and Joey?" Leon asked. Ryan shook his head and Leon couldn't help but grimace.

"Give them time Leon," Yasuko said, "I'm sure they'll report their findings right away if they find something."

Right on cue, Ryan felt his phone softly vibrate. He took it out and looked at the screen. "It's Spilo and Joey," he said, catching everyone's attention.

_'Found the basement. Joey thinks hostages are here. Going in.'_

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Okay, we've got the plot started! More exciting episodes are soon to come! Oh and Alicia and her Mamodo belong to thatguy3331, just for future reference. We'll be seeing more of them soon.<strong>

**Jyan: How long will the NEXT update-**

**Me: *holds lighter up to spell book***

**Jyan: Shutting up.**

**Me: Thank you. **

**Ara: *whispers* I wouldn't bother asking about updates anymore Jyan; she's in college now after all...**

**Me: I heard that! And just because I'm in college doesn't mean I can't update! **

**Ryan: Well maybe if you would cut back on how long these chapters are-**

**Me: Now YOU'RE teasing me?! I'll make the chapters as long as I want! It's my story dammit! And where does it say that OCs can torment the author?!**

**Jyan: Nowhere! We're in YOUR head! We torment you because you made us that way!**

**Me: Shut up! I'm ignoring you! You're not even here right now! La lala la la lala *holds hands over ears* **

**Ara: Please review guys...I think Ace needs some good motivation...**


	19. He's Alive!

**Me: HA! A month! See? I'm improving already!**

**Jyan: You're still neglecting Digitalia...**

**Me: *silently fuming***

**Quick recap: Ara and friends began their mission to infiltrate the school where Sachiko is supposedly hiding. Ara and Jyan snuck in to look at the third and fourth floors, and Spilo and Joey took the first floor, leaving the rest of the gang keeping watch outside the school. Ara and Jyan found nothing of importance, but Spilo and Joey managed to find the place where the hostages are being held.**

* * *

><p>"Are you sure this is the place?" Spilo asked.<p>

Joey nodded, "You don't forget a place like this."

Spilo nodded, "Alright, you're the boss." He quickly texted the others before glancing around to make sure no one was coming.

_'Found the basement. Joey thinks hostages are here. Going in.'_

He opened the creaky door and they slipped inside and shut it so as not to draw any attention. They snuck down the thin wooden staircase as quietly as they could while trying to adjust their eyes to the surrounding darkness. Spilo was tempted to use the phone as a light, but he didn't want to risk being seen. There could be Mamodo guarding down here.

As they descended the stairs, Spilo could barely hear the sound of strained breathing from below. They finally reached the bottom and Spilo could feel Joey shaking beside him. He took Joey's hand to calm him as they started to walk through the basement.

As they walked deeper into the room, they could make out several figures leaning against the walls. The soft clinking of chains was heard as the figures moved sluggishly. He felt a small tug from Joey as he lead Spilo in a certain direction without hesitation. It was as if the young Mamodo knew the place like the back of his hand.

Their eyes darted left and right for any sign of trouble. Getting into a fight down here was the last thing they wanted. They eventually reached a wall next to an air vent and Joey approached the figure lying under it. "Jenny…?" he whispered.

The figure stirred and slowly lifted its head. It was too dark to make out any features, but Joey seemed to recognize her well enough. "J…Joey…?" the figure rasped out, "Joe, is that really you?" Joey responded by throwing his arms around the figure in a desperate hug.

"W-What are you doing here?" Jenny asked frantically, "Don't tell me they-"

"We're getting you out of here." Joey said, cutting off her frantic chain of thought. Jenny looked behind Joey and finally noticed the figure of Spilo standing there. She tensed and pulled Joey close again.

Spilo smiled and knelt in front of them. "You must be Jenny." He whispered.

"Who…who are you?" Jenny asked, not releasing Joey.

"My name's Spilo; my friends and I are gonna get you out of here." He explained.

"I'm so glad you're okay…" Joey whispered, burying his face into his partner's shoulder. Jenny kissed the top of his head and Spilo swore he saw the glint of tears from her eyes in the darkness. He grinned and took out the cell phone. Covering the screen's luminous glow as best he could, he texted the others:

_'Found the hostages and Jenny. They seem alright.' _

A few moments after he sent it, the phone vibrated with another message. Spilo opened the text and his eyes widened, "Holy…"

* * *

><p>Ryan hugged his knees as he tried to keep his nerves down. They had just gotten the text from Spilo about Jenny and the other hostages, but that only seemed to get everyone on edge. The mission was at a critical point, and one screw up could cost them everything.<p>

Ryan felt the phone vibrate and quickly picked it up. He opened the text, "It's Ara and Jyan again." He said.

"They okay?" Josh asked.

Ryan silently read the text and did a double take. He read it over and over again as his eyes slowly grew large. "Son of a bitch…" he breathed.

"What? What is it?" Yoshiki asked impatiently. Ryan simply turned the phone around so the small screen was facing his companions. The words caused almost everyone's jaws to drop.

_'I think we found Satoshi Mochida.'_

* * *

><p>Ara and Jyan crept up the stairs, Jyan a few stairs ahead. The boy reached the top and peeked around the hallway. "All clear." He whispered.<p>

Ara quickly and quietly climbed the rest of the stairs and joined Jyan on the fourth floor hallway. This floor was a bit brighter, mostly due to the bits of sunlight streaming in from small holes in the ceiling. Still keeping their alert up, they explored the hallway.

There wasn't much to this floor, there were very few classrooms attached to it. They made a point to search each one, but the classrooms were just as empty as the hallway.

"Boy, the top two floors are pretty boring." Jyan commented, looking under a dusty desk.

"At least after this we can join Spilo and Joey," Ara said looking at the cell phone, "Apparently they found Jenny and the hostages. They'll probably need help getting them out."

"Jenny?"

"Joey's book owner, remember?"

"Oh yeah…"

They exited the classroom and ventured down the hallway until they reached one final door that sat at the end of the hallway. Jyan rubbed his hands together, "Alright; a door like this is bound to have something good behind it."

Ara flashed a small smile before they arrived at the door and slowly opened it. According to the sign above, it was the infirmary. They tentatively stepped inside and looked around. It was quite empty, save for a desk, a large dusty white screen sitting in the middle of the room, and two beds.

They took a few steps further inside when something on the bed caught their attention. Ara stumbled back and clapped her hands over her mouth to stifle a gasp while Jyan fell backwards on his behind from shock.

"Oh my…"

"Holy fish biscuits!"

There was a body lying on the bed closest to them. They glanced at each other and slowly made their way towards it.

It was a boy that looked about sixteen or seventeen. He had brown hair, wore a white button up shirt over a light blue shirt and black pants. The boy's skin was whiter than snow and large bags hung under his eyes.

He was so skinny that he looked like a skeleton with a tightly fitting skin suit on and his clothes were ragged, dirty, and practically hanging off of him. Ara and Jyan stood beside him, staring at him.

"Is he…?" Jyan trailed off.

Ara said nothing as she took in the brown hair and his bony face and her heart almost stopped. "Holy crap…" she whispered. "I think…I think this is Satoshi!"

Jyan's eyes widened and he took in his appearance, "You're right; he looks like the picture!" he exclaimed quietly; he quickly yanked out the phone and typed what they found.

Ara looked over the body; so this was the boy who had been missing for six months. It certainly showed. He looked like all the life had been sucked out of him, deprived of everything, food water, you name it. He didn't even look human anymore.

She knelt down and leaned over him, feeling immense sorrow as Yoshiki and Yuka came to mind. After all this time looking for him, they would be coming out empty handed. She hesitantly and slowly touched the boy's hand. His skin felt clammy to the touch.

She brushed her fingers along his wrist when she suddenly stopped. She gently wrapped her fingers around his wrist and could just barely make out a small thump from under the skin.

"No way…"

She quickly placed a hand on his chest and, sure enough, a faint and slow heartbeat could be felt under his clothes. Straining her eyesight, Ara could even see the subtle rise and fall of his chest. She almost fell over from the revelation, "Oh…my…God…" she rasped out.

She looked at Jyan who was watching her in astonishment, putting the pieces together as they both spoke their surprise.

"He's alive!"

* * *

><p>"Well, how is he? Is he alive?" Yoshiki demanded.<p>

"Calm down, I'm asking now!" Ryan said, quickly opening the chat in the text. He quickly began to type the question when the phone suddenly vibrated again. He almost dropped it from the shock it gave him.

"What is it?" Yuka asked, eyes wide with anticipation.

He looked at the text before he grinned in utter disbelief. He let out a small bark of laughter before facing his friends, "No need to worry you guys." He said, holding the phone up for them to see.

Yuka read it quickly and covered her mouth to suppress her tears of joy. At that moment, Yoshiki felt his whole body turn to jelly. He stared at the small screen as the two words brought more comfort than he had ever felt in his life.

_'HE'S ALIVE!'_

* * *

><p><strong>Me: Aaaaand scene! Jenny and Satoshi are alive and alright! But don't think that things are going to get easier from here! Next chapter, we're going to focus a bit more on Yoshiki, Yuka and Satoshi. After all, characters are useless unless you know things about them!<strong>

**Ara: Just focus on the next chapter and you'll be caught up in no time!**

**Me: FINALLY some encouragement from you guys! Review please!**


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